GARDEN OF ALLAH.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 600, 31 August 1909, Page 6

GARDEN OF ALLAH.

(B? E. D'Estbbbb.)

Know, O stranger of Hie. land beyond the great waters, that in this Garden of Allah fheire came to dwell a great spirit, and he -was called Taihoa, which means "Tho Mighty Sleeper." . "It is well," said the people, of the Garden of Allah, at the command of their rulers, "Taihoa be praised; Taihoa,/il Taihoa 1." And so'it happened that the Mighty Sleeper took up his abode in the tents of ,th,e chief rulers, and they welcomed him and worf&ippod him. At Taihoa's command, lo a great wall arose across tho Garden of Allah, and no man might pass beyond the barrier without the sanction of Tainoa or his. high priests. : : And by and by-the common people came to the chief rulers and cried, "Wo .have used to the full all of the Garden without the wall, give us of the common heritage that, our. Bon6 may sow their com and grow their harvests, and that they may marry and multiply as Allah intended. So bo it!',' "All is well,*' said the niters, '.'lot Taihoa be consulted," and they bowed their, heads before the Mighty Sleeper. ' ' But Tainoa let his . Shadow rest.over ; tho Garden, and all the people went to sleep for six. moons: On. the seventh they -arose and called aloud to the chief rulers, saying, "Is it yet time?" And the rihief nilers. who spoke in the name of the Shadow, said, "All is well : peace be with yon, Taihoa be praised!" And so everyone went to sleep again for twelve moons. .. . ' Then at tho thirteenth moon there awakened a husbandman, and bo ate of the salt and was athrist. He called upon the people to awaken from their slumber and go forth to do.Allah's work in.'the Garden, but the Shadow came, : BJid the chief riilers counselled tho people not .to listen,to him who had eaten the stilt, ;and the people slept again. But.,the husbandman, rose up and demanded audience of the chief rulers in their tents, and he called upon them.to take away tho Shadow and to make paths through the Garden of Allah and übo tho rivers of sweet water. . , .• And the rulers became angered' and said, "How shall this slave disturb our worship with' his rude prayers I Let us worship again., Taihoa be praised, and.we, his_prppnots, praise him I So they, retired within their tents again, and the sounds of then* slumber were as the roar of a million cymbals of .brass. , 1 . ' But one by one the watching husbandman aroused' some, of the 1 common people, and they, too, ate of the salt,.arid were athirst, arid they went forth and called upon others. Longingly' they. looked, toward the tents of ,the rulers, where the'wines, arid the rich fruits of tribute wero stored, for they were hungry. from fasting, 'and they saw that in the portion .of the Garden of Allah outside the wall of Taihoa there was not enough soil to grow corn for all the people. Then they banded together and marched to the council tent, saying: "We and our sons and our sons' sons desire that the Garden of our common heritage may be opened to us, that we may till the soil and bring forth fruits arid feed the. hungry ones who have no corn, and . that we may find work for the tent-dwellers. Let us not slumber and 'starve as men / without brains. Wo deny him whoso name is Sleep; we will not worr ship with the rulers. : Arise,' oh ye people j aria tear down the wall of Taihoa. Aim yourselves, and train in the arts, of war as your-fitters, did, for truly we know not when an enemy cometh 1" • '• , But the,' Shadow of Taihoa stood forth by the gateway: of the wall, bearing the official sword iof the rulers. . Andthe .Voice/ of Taihoa called them robbers, and bade them go' east to the desert, where thero . was. sand arid- rock, and cultivate that. Then the leader of, the husbandmen called 1 on the rulers in the 'name of the common people, arid challenged them/after the manner of our country, but the rulers, with much wind, said to the people: "Sleep on. It is well. gave : we not much stone and inuch sand, and more'stone and more sand, .wherewith' tovgrowoyouunorop?j alThe Garden is not for you,* but for'fchose'who come after you' when you are dust a thousand years. Sleep on, dumb' and faithful ones, and'give no ear .to this leader, for tnily upon nim is the Shadow of Allah 1 Praise Taihoa,' Benedicitej omnia opera I" And many of the people, not knowing better, and not recognising, that the 1 truth was not with their fillers, slept, again, and cunning agents of the rulers went amongst them and drugged them... \"

: Lo! on the whole Garden rested tho Shadow of Taihoa now, and a great, cloud drow over the . face of the sun that shono on Allah's own land. Great storm winds arose, and brought • whispers from over the great waters of an enemy with many ships, who coveted the land ' Bleeping under the Shadow of Taihoa, and left unprotected by careless, and sleep-blinded rulers. , Manp. of, the tent-dwellers awoke, The husbandmen, who' had been: sent forth into tKo.desert of sand and stone, murmured and looked'toward the rioh soils, behind the'awful barrier of Taihoa. There was dissensionand much : .unrest '• amongst the peoplo, and many ; and-'many more' awakened,' and ,th». banner .of the leader of • husbandmen was raised opposite the tents -ot the rukrs, and more .'and' more. l .of the ' people gathered, around, him. Again and. yet again he issued his "challenges-, to tlie rulers,- but they feigned- not to'hear, atid shifted their tents and' wfint. amongst tho common people.iwith soft words and promises of rich reward: :

Know, 0 Stranger from oveT'the great waters, that the leader' of husbandmen was beaten/back many times', but at last the people of the Garden of Allah threw off the effects, of the drugs, that' had been given them," saw that the ruler's* promises were novor kept, and the'rewards were never intended,and murmuririgs' rose into* shouts, and .discontent, grew/into .anger, and anger blazed into rebellion, and then came tho" last- glorious -struggle for freedom and the rights of tillage of the soil. Truly it'was a fight, and'it made for ever memorable in the Garden of l Allah, the noon of November, in the year of Allah, 1911. The jbanner of ; the leader "of husbandincn 'became 'tho 'rallying point: for the people of 'the' Garden- of Allah, and; they , flocked to it with tlie beating of cymbals'and the clash of swords and spears,, till'they were as a forest stirred by an angry' wind.' In vain the rulers, now.aiVakc, strove to win back their old legions, in vain'they oalled upon the' Shadow of Taihoa;far help. The Mignty Sleeper was- in hiding behind his own great wall, and the. chief. rulers, depending'only now upon their own camp followers; nion without spirit, dumb slaves, and hired servants, at last came' out- from their tents, and gave battle., From dawn till dark the fight raged; along, 'the 'wall; of .Taihoaj breach; after breach was; made, and with lond cries of victory tho people, led by the leader of husbandmen,, rushed to tho assault, and the-flashing of spears arid swords ■was as'-the shining of the sun upon/ the bosom of,'the great waters. The mighty gates of the wall shook, yielded, and .fell, and the attacking legions swept j'n like, a flood; into their own comlnoii heritage kept for them so long by tho Mighty Sleeperand his disciples. - Cut into isolated groups now, deserted,' by:-'one-half; of their forces, the rulers fought for their lives, and tho Spirit of Taihoa was hemmed'in with them. Attack followed attack, and ever and ailon vast sections of the cloud-high barrier fell away, until at sundown not one stone was left upon another to mark where' the wall had stood aiid tho rulers were prisoners, shorn of their dignity and divested of their office, and none had pity for theni, for.had. they not-sought to keep the people of ,the : Garden of Allah from tho heritage which Allah had givon? And later, by common .consent, the prisoners were sent forth into tho, desert of sand and stone, with tho Shadow : .of Taihoa for company all the rest of-the days .of their lives:'

So, 0 Stranger, came peaoo and happiness in the Garden of Allah 1 So, the Garden was made to give forth its rich harvests of fruits- and wines and oil, and thus the people became, happy and no longer sought to leave the Garden, for othor lands across tho troubled waters, and each man: and each man's son was trained to the art. of war and the high priests came out into the market places and holped to servo out tho arms, that ail enemy knocking at the door might tod the way closed. Thus, -too, tho Garden of Allah becanio rich, and the people inulti'plied , many times, and there was , food for all and< t-o spare, as Allah intended it should be'. Praise-be to Allah, for ever, and everjJiMel