Beau Geste - Wren, Percival Christopher

. .

Résumé :
Mr. George Lawrence, C.M.G., First Class District Officer of His Majesty's Civil Service, sat at the door of his tent and viewed the African desert scene with the eye of extreme disfavour. There was beauty neither in the landscape nor in the eye of the beholder.

The landscape consisted of sand, stone, kerengia burr-grass, tafasa underbrush, yellow, long-stalked with long thin bean-pods; the whole varied by clumps of the coarse and hideous tumpafia plant.

The eye was jaundiced, thanks to the heat and foul dust of Bornu, to malaria, dysentery, inferior food, poisonous water, and rapid continuous marching in appalling heat.

Weak and ill in body, Lawrence was worried and anxious in mind, the one reacting on the other.

In the first place, there was the old standing trouble about the Shuwa Patrol; in the second, the truculent Chiboks were waxing insolent again, and their young men were regarding not the words of their elders concerning Sir Garnet Wolseley, and what happened, long, long ago, after the battle of Chibok Hill. Thirdly, the price of grain had risen to six shillings a saa, and famine threatened; fourthly, the Shehu and Shuwa sheiks were quarrelling again; and, fifthly, there was a very bad smallpox ju-ju abroad in the land (a secret society whose secret was to offer His Majesty's liege subjects the choice between being infected with smallpox, or paying heavy blackmail to the society). Lastly, there was acrimonious correspondence with the All-Wise Ones (of the Secretariat in Aiki Square at Zungeru), who, as usual, knew better than the man on the spot, and bade him do either the impossible or the disastrous.

And across all the Harmattan was blowing hard, that terrible wind that carries the Saharan dust a hundred miles to sea, not so much as a sand-storm, but as a mist or fog of dust as fine as flour, filling the eyes, the lungs, the pores of the skin, the nose and throat; getting into the locks of rifles, the works of watches and cameras, defiling water, food and everything else; rendering life a burden and a curse.

- Taken from Beau Geste written by Percival Christopher Wren

Sommaire:
Percival Christopher Wren (1875-1941) was a British author renowned for his adventurous and dramatic novels, many of which are set in colonial India. Born in the United Kingdom, Wren's experiences as a soldier and journalist significantly influenced his writing. His most famous work, Beau Geste, published in 1924, is a classic adventure novel that showcases his skill in creating thrilling narratives with exotic and military settings. Wren's novels often reflect his fascination with the British Empire and its colonial territories, particularly India. His storytelling combines elements of romance, action, and intrigue, set against richly described backgrounds. Wren's characters are frequently portrayed as heroic figures navigating the complexities of colonial politics and cultural clashes. In addition to Beau Geste, Wren wrote several other notable works, including Snake and Sword, which further illustrate his knack for blending adventure with romantic and historical elements. His books have left a lasting legacy in the genre of colonial adventure fiction, making him a significant figure in early 20th-century literature....