Talbot Mundy

“ The sun rises, but it sets at evening, since Allah wills; but is my day so short?”
“By no means,” answered Grim. “The El-Maan men saw me and believed I was the Lion of Petra. I forbade the looting of the train, and your honor’s wife Ayisha went to El-Maan to enforce obedience by her presence.
“Later they saw me start for Petra when the train had passed; and now they will learn that Ibrahim ben Ah with sevenscore men is bivouacking in the desert. The world is round, O Ali Higg, so that where in one place it seems dark in another they say the sun is rising.” ”

“ Do you think the British would be fools enough to let that go unpunished? The El-Maan ‘people’ would surely have appealed to them. Aeroplanes would have been sent to bomb you out of Petra. Can you fight aeroplanes?”
“The British do not pretend to rule on this side of the Jordan,” the Lion retorted.
“No. Do you want them to pretend to?”
“Allah forbid!”
“Then take a friend’s advice, O Ali Higg, and keep the peace here rather than make war.”
“That is good advice; but will the British make a treaty with me?”
“No,” Grim answered, smiling. ”

“ But show me a trick that can defeat eight hundred men. The Sheikh of Abu Lissan plans to come against me. Those El-Maan dogs had heard of it, and so had the Beni Aroun; therefore I planned to crush them first before dealing with Abu Lissan. Show me a trick that can defeat the Abu Lissan men, and surely I will call thee friend!”
“Suppose we make a bargain then,” said Grim. ”