IV

about Gold Mines and Syndicates, Excellency: but methinks if there be gold in such schemes, the grubbing, grabbing Americans would not let it come to Syria.’ ‘Indeed, so,’ he murmurs, musing; ‘indeed, so.’ And clapping for the serving- zabtie ⁠—the mudirs and kaimakams of the Lebanon make these zabties , whose duty is to serve papers, serve, too, in their homes⁠—he orders for me a cup of coffee. And further complaining to me, he curses America for robbing the country of its men and labourers.⁠—‘We can no more find tenants for our estates, despite the fact that they get more of the income than we do. The shreek (partner), or tenant, is rightly called so. For the owner of an estate that yields fifty pounds, for instance, barely gets half of it; while the shreek , he who tills and cultivates the land, gets away with the other half, sniffing and grumbling withal. Of a truth, land-tenants are not so well-off anywhere. And if the land but yields a considerable portion, anyone with a few grains of the energy of those Americans, would prefer to be a shreek than a real-estate owner.’ Thus, his Excellency, complaining of the times, regretting his losses, cursing America and its Gold Mines; and having done, drops the narghile tube from his hand and dozes on the divan.