The Lord of the Sea

Book Excerpt: ... Frankl was just preparing to celebrate the kiddush, "He cannot be seen now", said a man in the hall."He must", said Hogarth. As he brushed past, two men raised an outcry: but Hogarth continued his swift way, and had half traversed a salon hung with a chaos of cut-glass when from a side-door appeared the inquiring face of Frankl in pious skull-cap."What is it?" he cried--"I cannot be seen--"He recognized the man of the towing-path, and on his face grew a look of scare, as he backed toward a study: but before he could slam the door, Hogarth, too, was within."Who are you? What is it?" whined Frankl, who was both hard master and cringing slave. Hogarth produced the Circular: but of Margaret not a word."Caps-and-tassels, you?"--flicking Frankl on the cheek with a fillip of his middle finger."You dare assault me! Why, I swear, I meant no harm--"Down came the whip upon the Jew's shoulders, Frankl, as the stings penetrated his caftan, giving out one roar, and the next instant, seeing the two Jews at the doorway, groaned the mean whisper: "Oh, don't make a man look small before the servants", crying out immediately: "Help!"Soon five or six servants were at the door, and, of these, two Arab Jews rushed forward, one a tall fellow, the other an obese bulk with bright black eyes, the former holding a slender blade--the knife with which "shechita", or slaughtering, was done: and while the corpulent Jew threw himself upon Hogarth, the other drew this knife through the flesh of Hogarth's shoulder, at the same time happening to cut the heavy Arab across the wrist. Now, there was some quarrel between the two Arabs, and the injured Arab, forgetting Hogarth, turned fiercely upon his fellow. Hogarth, meanwhile, had not let go Frankl, nor delivered the intended number of cuts: so he was again standing with uplifted whip, when his eye happened to fall upon the doorway. He saw there a sight which struck his arm paralysed: Rebekah Frankl. TwoClose...