“But the aborigines,” continued Lucien—
“The abor-what? sir,” asked Flaggan, removing his pipe.
“The aborigines—the original inhabitants of the land—”
“Ah, I see, sir,” returned Ted; “them as was at the werry beginnin’, just arter Adam and Eve like; ’zactly so—fire away!”
“Well, I’m not quite sure,” replied Lucien, with a laugh, “that they came here immediately after the time of Adam, but at all events they came before the time of an authentic history, for our earliest historians record the fact that before any other nation invaded the northern shores of Africa, the country was in possession of a very warlike race, who, although overcome and driven from the plains by the more civilised and better-armed nations that successively attacked them, remained in the fastnesses of the Atlas Mountains absolutely unconquerable, and the descendants of these original inhabitants, known as Kabyles, remain a free and independent people at the present day, having successfully defied the might of Romans, Vandals, Arabs, and others, since the beginning of time.” (See Note 1.)
“You don’t say so, sir,” remarked Flaggan, blowing a thin cloud of admiration into the air; “well, an’ how did things git along arter the abridginal inhabitants was fust druv back into the mountains?”
“They did not get along quite so quietly as might have been desired,” said Lucien.
“The early history of the northern shores of Africa, now known as Algeria,” he continued, “is involved in the mists of antiquity.”
“Arrah! now, don’t misremimber,” said Ted, with a quiet grin, “that I ain’t bin edicated quite up to that.”
“Well, the beginning of it all,” said Lucien, returning the grin with a smile, “is rather foggy.”