'Certainly not,' replied the gentleman, with indignation.
I ventured to approach and tell him that they were not murderers in our sense of the word, and that they depended for a bare subsistence upon public charity. The only thanks I got were a cold stare from the man, a fastidious grimace from the two ladies, and an 'Oh, indeed!' so arrogant in tone that I retired discomfited. My ill-success may be attributable to the fact that I was wearing a 'kufiyeh' and 'acâl' and so appeared to them as what is called a 'native.'
I myself have always, since that day, felt it my duty to give alms to murderers in Eastern lands.
FOOTNOTES:
[7] i.e., Highwaymen.