transparent.

As he passed under the archway of the town's gate the cannon of the
Kasbah boomed forth a salute, Ben Aboo dismounted and kissed his
stirrup, and the crowds in the streets burst upon him with blessings.

"God bless our Lord!"

"Sultan Abd er-Rahman!"

"God prolong the life of our Lord!"

He seemed hardly to hear them. Once his hand touched his breast when the
Kaid approached him. After that he looked neither to the right nor to
the left, nor gave any sign of pleasure or recognition. Nevertheless
the people in the streets ceased not to greet him with deafening
acclamations.

"All's well, all's well," they told each other, and pointed to the white
horse--the sign of peace--which the Sultan rode, and to the riderless
black horse--the sign of strife--that pranced behind him.

The women on the housetops also, in their hooded cloaks, welcomed the
Sultan with a shrill ululation: "Yoo-yoo, yoo-yoo, yoo-yoo!"

Not content with this, the usual greeting of their sex and nation, some
of them who had hitherto been closely veiled threw back their muslin
coverings, exposed their faces to his face, and welcomed him with more
articulate cries.