The mosque seemed to rock with the shouts which followed these words, and as soon as the cries of the people had subsided, the voice of Ishmael, now louder and more tremulous than before, rang through its vaults again.
"Deep in the heart of man, my brothers, is the expectation of a day when the Almighty will send His Messenger to purify and pacify the world and to banish intolerance and wrong. The Jews look for the Messiah, the Christians for the divine man of Judæa, and we that are Moslems for the Mahdi and the Christ.
"In all climes and ages, amid all sorrows and sufferings, sunk in the depths of ignorance, sold into slavery, the poorest of the poor, the most miserable among the most miserable of the world, humanity has yet cherished that great expectation. Real as life, real as death, real as wells of water in a desert land to man on his earthly pilgrimage is the hope of a Deliverer from oppression and injustice—and who shall say it is vain and false? It is true, my brothers, true as the sky rolling overhead. Our Deliverer is coming! He is coming soon! He is coming now!"
Ishmael’s tremulous voice had by this time broken into hysterical sobs, and the responses of his hearers had risen to delirious cries.
More of the same kind followed which Helena did not hear, but suddenly she was awakened to full consciousness of what was going on about her by hearing Ishmael speak of Gordon and the people answering him with rapturous shouts.
"He is not of our race, yet no doubt enters into our hearts of his fidelity."
"He is not of our faith, yet he will be true to God and His people."
"For us he has left his home, his country, and his kindred."
"For us he is going into the place of danger."
"What says the Lord in the Holy Koran?—’They therefore who had left their country and suffered for My sake I will surely bring them into gardens watered by rivers—a reward of God.’"
"The Lord bless the white man to whom the black man is a brother! Bless him in the morning splendour! Bless him in the still of night! Bless him with children—the eye of the heart of man! Bless him with the love of woman—the joy and the crown of life!"
"And may the Lord of majesty and might who has hitherto covered his head in battle protect and preserve him now!"