MIDDLE EAST THE CAMEL DRIVER (SEE COVER) AT 6 : 30 ONE 
MORNING EARLY THIS MONTH, A PHONE SHRILLED IN THE SMALL OFFICE 
OFF THE BEDROOM OF EGYPT'S PRESIDENT GAMAL ABDEL NASSER . ALREADY 
AWAKE, HE LIFTED THE RECEIVER TO HEAR EXCITING NEWS : A 
MILITARY COUP HAD JUST BEEN LAUNCHED AGAINST THE ANTI-NASSER GOVERNMENT OF 
SYRIA . THE PHONE RANG AGAIN . IT WAS THE MINISTER 
OF CULTURE AND NATIONAL GUIDANCE . HOW SHOULD RADIO CAIRO HANDLE 
THE SYRIAN CRISIS ? SUPPORT THE REBELS, SNAPPED NASSER . THEN 
EGYPT'S BOSS RAPPED OUT A SUCCESSION OF TELEPHONED COMMANDS . TO 
THE AIR FORCE : ALERT THE BOMBERS AND FIGHTERS IN CASE 
THE SYRIAN REBELS CALL FOR HELP . TO THE NAVY (SIX 
DESTROYERS AND TEN SUBMARINES) : STEAM NORTHWARD AND AWAIT ORDERS . 
TO THE ARMY : PREPARE TO MOVE IN CASE THE ISRAELIS 
MIGHT BE THINKING OF INTERVENTION ; PLACE MISSILES ON LAUNCH PADS 
READY TO FIRE . THIS DONE, NASSER FINISHED DRESSING AND WENT 
DOWNSTAIRS . THE PHONE RANG AGAIN, LONG DISTANCE FROM BAGHDAD . 
PRESIDENT ABDUL SALAM AREF, WHO ONLY FOUR WEEKS BEFORE HAD OVERTHROWN 
ANOTHER ANTI-NASSER REGIME IN IRAQ, SOLICITOUSLY ASKED WHAT NASSER INTENDED DOING 
ABOUT SYRIA . NASSER SAID THAT HE WOULD RECOGNIZE A REBEL 
GOVERNMENT AS SOON AS IT WAS FORMED . AREF DELICATELY RESPONDED 
THAT OF COURSE, EGYPT SHOULD BE THE FIRST STATE TO GRANT 
RECOGNITION, PROMISED THAT IRAQ WOULD FOLLOW SUIT FIVE MINUTES LATER . 
LIMB FROM LIMB . SINCE THE SYRIAN COUP WAS BOTH SWIFT 
AND SUCCESSFUL, NASSER'S NERVES AND THE EGYPTIAN ARMY WERE NOT PUT 
TO THE TEST . ISRAEL ALERTED ITS BORDER DEFENSES BUT MADE 
NO FURTHER MOVE . ON THE SURFACE, IN FACT, THE SYRIAN 
AFFAIR WAS MUCH MILDER AND LESS BLOODY THAN MOST ARAB REVOLTS 
. IN THE PAST 15 YEARS, THE MIDDLE EAST HAS BEEN 
CONTINUALLY SHAKEN LIKE A KALEIDOSCOPE, CONSTANTLY FALLING INTO NEW PATTERNS . 
THERE HAVE BEEN TWO SIZABLE WARS AND FULLY TWO DOZEN ARMED 
UPRISINGS AND REBELLIONS . PREMIERS AND PRINCES HAVE BEEN TORN LIMB 
FROM LIMB BY STREET MOBS ; THOUSANDS OF POLITICIANS AND ARMY 
OFFICERS HAVE BEEN KILLED BY HANGING, BEHEADING, FIRING SQUADS AND ASSASSINS 
; AND SWARMS OF STUDENTS, WORKERS AND TRIBESMEN HAVE BEEN MOWED 
DOWN BY MACHINE GUNS AND BOMBS . IT WAS QUITE CLEAR 
LAST WEEK THAT THE LATEST SHAKE OF THE KALEIDOSCOPE RESULTED IN 
NEW PATTERNS AND ALIGNMENTS OVERWHELMINGLY FAVORABLE TO GAMAL ABDEL NASSER . 
THE SYRIAN REVOLUTION WAS THE THIRD IN SIX MONTHS BY REBELS 
PLEDGED TO MAKE COMMON CAUSE WITH EGYPT . FLIGHTS OF NEW 
LEADERS POURED INTO CAIRO FOR TEARSTAINED EMBRACES WITH NASSER AND NIGHTLONG 
CONFERENCES ON THE FUTURE COURSE OF THAT MISTY CONCEPT CALLED ARAB 
UNITY . NASSER STANDS AT THE PINNACLE OF PRESTIGE, IF NOT 
OF POWER, AND THE SHADOW HE CASTS HAS NEVER BEEN LONGER 
. TODAY, IT FALLS OVER THE ENTIRE ARAB WORLD FROM THE 
PERSIAN GULF TO THE ATLANTIC OCEAN . MATTER OF SABOTAGE ? 
FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 500 YEARS, THE THREE KEY ARAB 
STATES OF EGYPT, IRAQ AND SYRIA HAVE A SIMILAR POLITICAL POSTURE 
AND ARE ON CLOSE AND FRIENDLY TERMS . THE NEW CROWD 
IN PRIMITIVE YEMEN, WHERE 28,000 EGYPTIAN TROOPS ARE PROPPING UP STILL 
ANOTHER PRONASSER REBELLION, IS EAGER TO JOIN ANY ALLIANCE THAT CAN 
BE HAMMERED OUT . THE MONARCHIES OF SAUDI ARABIA AND JORDAN 
CLOSE FRIENDS OF THE WEST BUT HATED ENEMIES OF THE ARAB 
NATIONALISTS FACE THE THREAT OF UPRISINGS AT THE HANDS OF POWERFUL 
LOCAL FRIENDS OF THE MAN IN CAIRO . WHEN KING SAUD'S 
PRIVATE COMET PLANE, EQUIPPED WITH A ROYAL THRONE, CRASHED LAST WEEK 
AGAINST AN ITALIAN MOUNTAIN, KILLING ALL 18 ABOARD, THE SAUDI ARABS 
AUTOMATICALLY ASSUMED THAT IT HAD BEEN SABOTAGED BY NASSER AGENTS MAYBE 
IT WAS AND MAYBE IT WAS NOT . IN THE SWIRLING 
MIDDLE EAST STRUGGLE, CAIRO WOULD FLEX ITS MUSCLES WHERE IT COULD 
. THE SUCCESSFUL COUPS IN YEMEN, SYRIA AND IRAQ WERE NO 
SURPRISE TO GAMAL ABDEL NASSER . HE KNEW THEY WERE COMING, 
IF NOT PRECISELY WHEN AND HOW . HE KNEW THE CONSPIRATORS 
INVOLVED IN EACH, THOUGH HE CLAIMS TO HAVE PULLED NO STRINGS 
. CAIRO IS THICKLY POPULATED BY EXILES FROM EVERY CORNER OF 
THE ARAB WORLD, RANGING FROM SYRIA'S TOUGH ABDUL HAMID SERRAJ, WHO 
ORIGINALLY FAILED NASSER IN DAMASCUS, TO OBSCURE TUNISIANS, YEMENIS, SAUDIS, JORDANIANS 
AND REFUGEES FROM THE BRITISHBACKED SHEIKDOMS OF THE PERSIAN GULF . 
MANY OF THEM LIVE WELL ON EGYPTIAN SUBSIDIES . FORMER SAUDI 
PETROLEUM MINISTER ABDULLAH TARIKI IS IN AND OUT OF CAIRO FREQUENTLY, 
HELPING ORGANIZE ARMS SHIPMENTS TO SAUDI ARABIAN DISSIDENTS BY AIR AND 
ACROSS THE LONG, EMPTY BORDER WITH KUWAIT . NASSER HAS WON 
OVER SAUDI ARABIA'S AMBASSADOR TO WEST GERMANY, WHO RESIGNED A FORTNIGHT 
AGO IN PROTEST AT HIS COUNTRY'S FAILURE TO INSTITUTE REFORMS . 
AT LEAST SIX OTHER SAUDI AMBASSADORS ARE SYMPATHETIC TO NASSER'S CAUSE 
ACCENTED VOICE . ALL THE ARAB WORLD IS INFLUENCED BY NASSER'S 
GENIUS AS A PROPAGANDIST . RISING TO SHARE CAIRO'S SKYLINE WITH 
THE HUGE DOME OF THE MOHAMMED ALI MOSQUE IS A FOREST 
OF TRANSMITTING ANTENNAS THAT CARRY RADIO CAIRO'S MESSAGE TO ALL THE 
WORLD . CAIRO'S VOICE BEARS MANY ACCENTS . THERE IS THE 
OVERT VOICE OF THE ARABS, AND A WHOLE CONCATENATION OF " 
VOICES " (VOICE OF THE ARAB NATION, FREE VOICE OF IRAN, 
VOICE OF FREE AFRICA, ETC.), WHICH BLEAT INCITEMENT TO REBELLION WITH 
NO IDENTIFICATION OF THEIR EGYPTIAN ORIGIN . THE TRANSMITTING COMPLEX IS 
ELABORATE AND DEVILISHLY CLEVER . RECENTLY, SOMALI-LANGUAGE TRANSMISSIONS HAVE SUPPORTED THE 
CLAIMS OF SOMALIA TO A PORTION OF NORTHEAST KENYA, WHILE SWAHILI 
BROADCASTS AIMED AT KENYA DENOUNCE THE IDEA . A U.S . 
CONSTRUCTION FIRM IS BUILDING A NEW TRANSMITTER, WHICH WILL BE BEAMED 
AT TUNISIA AND AIMED AT DESTROYING PRESIDENT HABIB BOURGUIBA . EGYPTIAN 
TV, THE LIVELIEST IN THE MIDDLE EAST, MANAGES TO KEEP THREE 
CHANNELS BUSY 20 HOURS A DAY, WHILE KINESCOPES SUBTLY LOADED WITH 
NASSER PROPAGANDA ARE SHIPPED OUT TO ALGERIA, KUWAIT AND LEBANON . 
NASSER HAS COLLECTED THE BEST ENTERTAINERS IN THE ARAB WORLD, AND 
USES THEM SUPERBLY . WHEN UM KALSOUM SINGS WE REVOLUTIONISTS, THE 
BEDOUINS IN THE DESERT ARE DEEPLY STIRRED . ONE OF THE 
MOST POPULAR SONGS AMONG ARAB KIDS IS HOW WE BUILD THE 
HIGH DAM AT ASWAN . EVERY TRANSISTOR RADIO IN THE MIDDLE 
EAST IS A NASSER AGENT . WHEN YEMEN REVOLTED AGAINST THE 
IMAM, NASSER SENT THEM ARMS AND TRANSISTORS . ARAB COMMUNISTS WHO 
BROADCAST LONG, WINDY SPEECHES FROM BULGARIA HAVE NOT A CHANCE AGAINST 
NASSER'S ENTERTAINERS . FIRE STRIKER . BUT NASSER'S TRIUMPHS ARE NOT 
SOLELY THE RESULT OF SUBVERSION AND POP SINGERS . HIS VERY 
EXAMPLE IS AN INSPIRATION . HE HAS BEEN THE UNCONTESTED RULER 
OF EGYPT FOR ALMOST A DECADE, EVER SINCE FEBRUARY 1954, WHEN 
HE PUT DOWN A REVOLT OF CAVALRY OFFICERS AND CONSOLIDATED HIS 
REGIME . DURING THAT TIME, THE OLD POLITICAL REMNANTS SUCH AS 
THE WAFDISTS HAVE DISAPPEARED AND EVEN BEEN FORGOTTEN . IT IS 
NASSER WHOSE PERSONALITY STANDS ABOVE ALL OTHERS IN EGYPT AND THE 
ARAB WORLD, AND NO OTHER NAME STRIKES FIRE LIKE HIS . 
HE IS HAILED AS THE MAN WHO DESTROYED EGYPT'S CORRUPT PAST 
AND GAVE ARABS A NEW DIGNITY . HIS PICTURE, WITH ITS 
PEPSODENT SMILE, IS FOUND IN EVERY CORNER OF THE MIDDLE EAST, 
FROM IRAQI BAZAARS TO THE HUTS OF ROYALIST YEMENI TRIBESMEN WHO 
STILL CLING TO NASSER'S PICTURE EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE FIGHTING NASSER'S 
TROOPS . WHAT NASSER HAS WORKING FOR HIM IS THE DEEP 
DESIRE OF ALL ARABS TO BE UNITED IN A SINGLE ARAB 
NATION, AND THEIR CONVICTION GRUDGING OR ENTHUSIASTIC THAT NASSER REPRESENTS THE 
BEST HOPE OF ACHIEVING IT . THIS DREAM OF UNITY HARKS 
BACK TO THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE 7TH CENTURY WHEN, SPURRED 
BY THE MESSIANIC MOSLEM RELIGION HANDED DOWN BY MOHAMMED THE PROPHET, 
ARAB WARRIORS BURST FROM THEIR DESERT PENINSULA AND CONQUERED EVERYTHING IN 
SIGHT . IN LESS THAN 150 YEARS, THE ARABS SWEPT VICTORIOUSLY 
NORTH TO ASIA MINOR AND THE WALLS OF BYZANTINE CONSTANTINOPLE, SOUTH 
OVER PERSIA AND AFGHANISTAN TO THE HEART OF INDIA, EAST THROUGH 
CENTRAL ASIA TO THE BORDERS OF CHINA, WEST OVER EGYPT AND 
AFRICA TO SPAIN AND SOUTHERN FRANCE . IT WAS AN INCREDIBLE 
EMPIRE LARGER THAN ANY CARVED OUT BY ALEXANDER THE GREAT OR 
IMPERIAL ROME . IT WAS ALSO AN EMPIRE THAT FELL SWIFTLY 
APART . BY THE 16TH CENTURY, THE ARAB STATES, ONE BY 
ONE, FELL TO THE OTTOMANS AND PASSED INTO THE LONG SLEEP 
OF TURKISH DOMINATION . THEN, IN WORLD WAR I, ARAB NATIONALISTS 
REBELLED AGAINST THEIR TURKISH OVERLORDS AND FOUGHT BESIDE THE BRITISH ARMIES 
IN THE MIDDLE EAST, CONFIDENT THAT THEY WOULD OBTAIN UNITY AND 
FREEDOM . MOVIEGOERS WHO HAVE SEEN LAWRENCE OF ARABIA KNOW THE 
GLOOMY RESULT : UNDER LEAGUE OF NATION MANDATES, MOST OF THE 
MIDDLE EAST WAS HANDED OVER TO BRITAIN AND FRANCE, AND FRUSTRATED 
ARABS WASTED THEMSELVES IN FUTILE REBELLIONS AGAINST THE COLONIAL POWERS . 
WORLD WAR II DID LITTLE BETTER FOR THE ARAB NATIONALISTS . 
INDIVIDUAL STATES GAINED INDEPENDENCE, BUT CONTROL WAS SECURELY HELD BY FEUDAL 
MONARCHS OR COALITIONS OF LANDOWNERS AND BUSINESSMEN WHO WERE OFTEN LITTLE 
MORE THAN COLONIAL PUPPETS . SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL " INVENTED " 
THE STATE OF JORDAN " ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON IN JERUSALEM 
. " EVEN WORSE, IN THE ARAB VIEW, WAS THE PARTITION 
OF PALESTINE TO PROVIDE A NATIONAL HOMELAND FOR THE JEWS . 
HUMILIATION BECAME COMPLETE IN 1948, WHEN THE COMBINED ARMIES OF THE 
ARAB COUNTRIES WERE CRUSHINGLY DEFEATED BY THE ISRAELIS . MOON ORBIT 
. HENCE THE ENORMOUS PRESTIGE NASSER WON IN 1956, WHEN HE 
SURVIVED THE MASSED ASSAULT OF BRITAIN, FRANCE AND ISRAEL IN THE 
SUEZ WAR . ARABS IGNORED THE FACT THAT THE EGYPTIANS WERE 
BEATEN IN THE FIELD AND THAT ONLY INTERVENTION BY THE U.S 
. AND THE SOVIET UNION SAVED NASSER FROM COLLAPSE . WHAT 
MATTERED WAS THAT NASSER HAD ENGAGED THE IMPERIALISTS AND ISRAEL IN 
BATTLE, AND MANAGED TO SURVIVE . WHEN EGYPT LATER PROVED THAT 
IT HAD THE TECHNICAL SKILL TO OPERATE THE SUEZ CANAL EFFICIENTLY 
ON ITS OWN, ARAB NATIONALISTS WERE AS PROUD AS IF NASSER 
HAD PERSONALLY ORBITED THE MOON . HIS ARAB BRETHREN ALSO SHARE 
PRIDE IN NASSER'S ACHIEVEMENTS AT HOME IN THE YEARS SINCE SUEZ 
. CAIRO, A CITY AS POPULOUS AS CHICAGO, HAS BECOME A 
BUSTLING, BUSY METROPOLIS . NEW SKYSCRAPERS LINE THE BANKS OF THE 
NILE, THROWING GLITTERING LIGHT ON THE RIVER AT NIGHT AND BY 
DAY REFLECTING IN THEIR GLASS WALLS THE STATELY GRACE OF THE 
SAILS OF FELUCCAS HEADED UPRIVER WITH CARGOES OF WHEAT AND LIME 
. THE BUILDING BOOM IS NOT CONFINED TO THE HOTELS, WHICH 
WERE HOST THIS WINTER TO A RECORD HALF-MILLION TOURISTS . ON 
THE EDGE OF THE CITY, ENTIRE NEW SUBURBS ARE IN BEING 
OR ABUILDING . AT MEDINET EL WAQF, EGYPT'S NEW MANAGERS ARE 
HOUSED IN MODERN STUCCO COTTAGES . ON THE NORTHERN RIM OF 
THE CITY, 40,000 LOW-COST HOUSING UNITS WERE ERECTED LAST YEAR . 
BUT MOST OF CAIRO REMAINS THE SAME : CLOSE, CROWDED AND 
CACOPHONOUS WITH HARD-PRESSED AUTO HORNS . IN IMBABA, ON THE WEST 
BANK OF THE NILE, CAMELS STREAKED WITH HENNA STILL PLOD UNKNOWINGLY 
TOWARD THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE, AND GULLY-GULLY MEN DELIGHT BRIGHT-EYED, BROWN-FACED CHILDREN WITH 
MAGIC TRICKS AS THEY DID THEIR GRANDFATHERS 50 YEARS AGO . 
IMBABA'S JUNK MARKET IS STILL UNCHANGED, AND BENT NAILS AND HALF-SHOELACES 
ARE TRADED WITH SOLEMNITY AND DILIGENCE . THE RED FLOWERPOT OF 
THE TARBOOSH HAS ALL BUT VANISHED FROM CAIRENES' HEADS, AND NASSER 
HAS EVEN MADE CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS IN HIS CAMPAIGN TO GET HIS 
CITY FOLK TO SWITCH TO EUROPEAN CLOTHES FROM THE NIGHTSHIRT-LIKE GALLABIYA 
. MOST ASTONISHING IS THE FACT THAT A VISITOR SELDOM SEES 
A BAREFOOT MAN, WOMAN OR CHILD . EVEN URCHINS FROM THE 
CAIRO SLUMS WEAR SHOES AND SOCKS . TODAY CAIRO WALKS WELL-DRESSED, 
WELL-SHOD AND BAREHEADED, WITH ITS SHOULDERS BACK . SWALLOWED REVENUES . 
OF ALL EGYPTIANS, THE INDUSTRIAL WORKER HAS FARED THE BEST UNDER 
NASSER . NEXT TO HIM COMES THE FELLAH, THE TIMELESS PEASANT 
WORKING THE TIMELESS LAND . IT WAS THE JEST OF 1952 
THAT NASSER'S FOREMOST AMBITION WAS TO RAISE THE FELLAHIN AT LEAST 
TO THE LIVING STANDARD OF THE GAMOOSA, THE WATER BUFFALO OF 
THE NILE . HE HAS MORE THAN SUCCEEDED . YOU CAN 
SEE IT SIMPLY IN THE FELLAH'S CLOTHES . BUT ALSO THE 
FELLAH, WHO USED TO HAVE MEAT ONLY ONCE OR TWICE A 
YEAR, NOW EATS IT AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK . IN 
PRE-NASSER EGYPT, THE MOST COMMON CHARACTERISTIC OF THE FELLAHIN WAS SUMMED 
UP IN THE PHRASE ANNA MALI, WHICH ROUGHLY TRANSLATES, " I 
COULDN'T CARE LESS . " TODAY THE WORD HEARD OVER AND 
OVER IS NAHDHA, A TERM MEANING TO SIT UP AND TAKE 
NOTICE OF THE WORLD AROUND YOU . EGYPT HAS BEEN AWAKE, 
TAKING NOTICE AND PARTICIPATING SINCE THE HOT SUMMER MORNING IN JULY 
1952, WHEN NASSER AND A GROUP OF YOUNG ARMY OFFICERS PUT 
AN END TO THE REGIME OF KING FAROUK . THE RESULTING 
ECONOMIC UPSURGE WAS HARDLY ACCOMPLISHED BY EGYPT ALONE . THE INTENSE 
DEVELOPMENT CAMPAIGN SWALLOWED UP REVENUES FROM THE SUEZ CANAL, AND FROM 
THE BIGGEST CROP, COTTON . IN THE PROCESS, THE NATION HAS 
SPENT ITS SAVINGS . EGYPT'S FOREIGN-EXCHANGE RESERVES, WHICH STOOD AT A 
BILLION DOLLARS AFTER WORLD WAR II, HAVE DWINDLED TO SCARCELY $10 
MILLION . THE CONSEQUENCE IS AN INCREASING DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN AID 
. THE COMMUNIST BLOC HAS COMMITTED ITSELF TO $700 MILLION IN 
ECONOMIC AID SINCE 1955, AND RUSSIA IS FOOTING THE BILL FOR 
THE FAMED HIGH DAM AT ASWAN, WHICH BY 1972 WILL INCREASE 
THE ARABLE LAND OF EGYPT FROM 6,000,000 ACRES TO 8,000,000 ACRES 
AND SUPPLY 10 BILLION KW-H IN ELECTRIC POWER . SINCE 1945, 
THE U.S . HAS SUPPLIED EGYPT WITH $628.6 MILLION, MOSTLY IN 
THE FORM OF SURPLUS FOOD PAID FOR IN EGYPTIAN POUNDS, 85 
PER CENT OF WHICH CAN BE (AND IS) LOANED BACK TO 
EGYPT . TODAY, EGYPT IS DEPENDENT ON THE U.S . FOR 
ITS FOOD, AND ON RUSSIA FOR ITS ARMS AND THE ASWAN 
DAM . THE FACT IS THAT NASSER IS NOT TOTALLY DEPENDENT 
ON ANY ONE POWER OR GROUP OF POWERS . HE IS 
STILL DETERMINEDLY NONALIGNED . BUT THINGS ARE BETTER THAN THE WORD 
IMPLIES . A FEW YEARS AGO, NASSER WAS NONALIGNED TOWARD THE 
EAST ; TODAY, HE IS MORE ACCURATELY REGARDED AS NONALIGNED TOWARD 
THE WEST . HAPPY NAUSEA . BUT NASSER'S ONE-MAN RULE HAS 
NOT BROUGHT UNMITIGATED BLISS TO EGYPT . THE BANKS AND INSURANCE 
COMPANIES WERE NATIONALIZED, AND THEIR OWNERS PAID OFF PARTLY IN BONDS 
THAT MAY NOT BE REDEEMED FOR YEARS TO COME . CONTRACTORS 
WHOSE EARNINGS REACH $69,000 A YEAR ARE TAKEN OVER, OR FORCED 
TO ACCEPT JOINT PARTICIPATION BY THE GOVERNMENT . WIPED OUT ARE 
THE GREAT LANDOWNERS ; FARM HOLDINGS ARE NOW LIMITED TO 100 
ACRES PER FAMILY . THIS FORM OF SOCIALISM IS BENIGN ENOUGH 
. IT LEAVES MOST OF THE NATION'S COMMERCE IN PRIVATE HANDS 
AND DOES NOT AFFECT THE OVERWHELMING NUMBER OF SMALL FARMERS, WHO 
OWN FAR LESS THAN 100 ACRES . THE PRESS WAS NATIONALIZED 
IN 1960, AND ITS EDITORS ARE PICKED BY THE REGIME ,; 
THEY, OF COURSE, DO NOT CRITICIZE NASSER'S POLICIES . POLITICAL ACTIVITY 
IN THE USUAL SENSE IS BANNED BECAUSE, AS NASSER PUTS IT, 
" IF I HAD THREE POLITICAL PARTIES, ONE WOULD BE RUN 
BY THE RICH, ONE BY THE SOVIETS, AND ONE BY THE 
U.S . " THE ONLY PARTY PERMITTED BY LAW IS THE 
OFFICIAL ARAB SOCIALIST UNION, WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO PROVIDE DEMOCRACY BY 
ITS REPRESENTATION IN EVERY VILLAGE, FACTORY AND URBAN DISTRICT . THERE, 
LEADERS ARE CHOSEN TO PASS LOCAL VIEWS ALONG TO PROVINCIAL AND 
NATIONAL COMMITTEES . NASSER'S REVOLUTION HAS NEVER BEEN PARTICULARLY TOTALITARIAN, BUT 
THERE WAS A NASTY PERIOD IN LATE 1961, WHEN SYRIA BROKE 
AWAY FROM EGYPT . HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE, INCLUDING ARMY OFFICERS, WERE 
ARRESTED . FOREIGN DIPLOMATS WERE SHADOWED BY SECRET POLICE . BUT 
SINCE THEN, THE ATMOSPHERE OF FEAR HAS LARGELY VANISHED . GENERAL 
MOHAMMED NAGUIB, THE 1952 REVOLUTION'S FIRST LEADER, WHO SERVED FOR TWO 
YEARS AS A FRONT FOR NASSER AND WAS THEN DEPOSED, STILL 
LIVES QUIETLY IN A CAIRO VILLA NEAR THE NILE AND IS 
PERMITTED TO MOVE FAIRLY FREELY ABOUT THE CITY . OLD NAHAS 
PASHA AND OTHER FORMER WAFDIST ENEMIES OF THE NEW REGIME REMAIN 
IN THEIR HOMES, WHICH, IN MOST CASES, THEY HAVE BEEN ALLOWED 
TO KEEP . NASSER'S GOVERNMENT HAS MOVED IMPRESSIVELY INTO THE FIELDS 
OF EDUCATION AND HEALTH . PRIMARY SCHOOLS WERE ERECTED AND STAFFED 
AT A RATE OF TWO EVERY THREE DAYS . EDUCATION IS 
FREE, AND EGYPT'S UNIVERSITIES ARE CRAMMED WITH 126,000 STUDENTS, INCLUDING 20,000 
FROM OTHER ARAB LANDS . IMPROVED HYGIENE AND FREE CLINICS HAVE 
ONLY INCREASED THE POPULATION PRESSURE : THE NEW ARABLE LAND TO 
BE PROVIDED BY THE ASWAN DAM WILL BE BARELY ENOUGH TO 
FEED THE ESTIMATED 55 MILLION POPULATION IN 20 YEARS . IN 
SORT, AT TREMENDOUS COST, EGYPT WILL NOT HAVE GONE FORWARD BUT 
MERELY STOOD STILL WITH THIS CHALLENGE, NASSER HAS BEGUN A NATIONWIDE 
BIRTH CONTROL CAMPAIGN . ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES ARE BEING SOLD BELOW COST 
(A MONTH'S SUPPLY FOR 46 #$ ), AND EGYPTIAN WOMEN ARE 
SAID TO RELISH THE PILLS BECAUSE THEY INDUCE THE SAME FEELING 
OF NAUSEA EXPERIENCED IN PREGNANCY . THE PRESSURE OF EGYPT'S MILLIONS, 
IN FACT, IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES OTHER ARAB 
STATES WARY OF BEING TOO CLOSELY EMBRACED BY NASSER . EGYPT, 
LIKE CHINA, IS ALWAYS THREATENING TO SPILL OVER ITS BORDERS INTO 
THE RELATIVELY EMPTY LAND OF ITS NEIGHBORS . INDIVIDUALISTIC ARABS, AS 
WELL, ARE NERVOUSLY CONCERNED ABOUT DISAPPEARING INTO THE STRAITJACKET OF NASSER'S 
ONEMAN RULE . LAPS OF GENERALS . TO THESE DISSENTERS, THERE 
IS ANOTHER FLASHING BEACON OF ARAB UNITY : THE BAATH (RENAISSANCE) 
PARTY, WHICH DOMINATES THE NEW GOVERNMENTS IN BOTH IRAQ AND SYRIA 
. THE STREET MOBS AND IMPATIENT YOUNG ARMY OFFICERS MAY WORSHIP 
NASSER, BUT ARAB STUDENTS AND INTELLECTUALS BOW BEFORE THE CREATOR OF 
BAATH, A TINY, BEAK-NOSED, MEEK-CHINNED SYRIAN NAMED MICHEL AFLAK . AFLAK, 
53, AN ARAB CHRISTIAN WHO COUNTS HIS AMBER WORRY BEADS THREE 
AT A TIME, SHUNS CROWDS AND HOLDS NO POST IN ANY 
GOVERNMENT, MAKES AN INCONGRUOUS RIVAL TO THE BRASH, BURLY, GOOD-LOOKING NASSER 
. NO CROWDS HAVE EVER SHRIEKED OVER HIM, CHANTED HIS NAME 
OR PARADED HIS PICTURE . HE LIVES IN A SMALL, CRAMPED 
DAMASCUS APARTMENT WITH A FRAYED CARPET, CHEAP FURNITURE, AND CLOTHES DRYING 
ON A BALCONY WASHLINE . HIS TWO INFANT CHILDREN TODDLE ABOUT 
AND, LAST WEEK, CLAMBERED ON THE LAPS OF GENERALS AND CABINET 
MINISTERS WHO CROWDED AFLAK'S PARLOR . THE SON OF A NATIONALIST-MINDED 
SHOPKEEPER, AFLAK PASSIONATELY EMBRACED THE IDEAL OF ARAB UNITY AS A 
DAMASCUS SCHOOLBOY . HIS EDUCATION AT THE SORBONNE IN PARIS, WHERE 
HE GRADUATED WITH HONORS IN HISTORY, WAS FINANCED BY A SUCCESSFUL 
UNCLE WHO HAD EMIGRATED TO BRAZIL . AFTER A BRIEF TEACHING 
CAREER AT A DAMASCUS LYCEE, AFLAK RESIGNED IN 1942 TO DEVOTE 
HIS LIFE TO POLITICS AND TO HIS PERSONAL CREATION, THE BAATH 
PARTY . WHAT AFLAK CREATED WAS A MYSTIC AND LYRICAL HYMN 
TO WAHADI ARABIYA (ARAB ONENESS), AND HE OVERFLOWS WITH SUCH SENTIMENTS 
AS " NATIONALISM IS LOVE BEFORE EVERYTHING ELSE, " AND " 
A NEW PAGE IS OPEN, THE PAGE OF THOSE WHO WALK 
WITH NAKED SOULS AS IF THEY WERE IN THEIR OWN BEDROOM 
. " HE DEFINES REVOLUTION AS " THAT POWERFUL PSYCHIC CURRENT, 
THAT MANDATORY STRUGGLE, WITHOUT WHICH THE REAWAKENING OF A NATION CANNOT 
BE UNDERSTOOD . " THE BAATH SLOGAN, " UNITY, FREEDOM, SOCIALISM, 
" WAS BLANDLY APPROPRIATED BY NASSER FOR HIS OWN USE, BUT 
NASSER HAS SHOWN NO EAGERNESS TO TAKE OVER OTHER BAATH TENETS, 
SUCH AS FREE ELECTIONS, FREE PRESS, AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND 
ASSEMBLY . FROM SYRIA, BAATHISM MOVED SWIFTLY TO IRAQ AND JORDAN, 
MORE SLOWLY TO KUWAIT AND SAUDI ARABIA . ALTHOUGH THE PARTY 
IS ANTIBOURGEOIS, MOST OF ITS ADHERENTS COME FROM MIDDLE-CLASS INTELLECTUALS AND 
SMALL SHOPKEEPERS . BAATH MADE CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENTS NERVOUS WITH ITS SOCIALISM 
(WHICH IS ACTUALLY A BLEND OF MILD MARXISM AND THE NEW 
DEAL), AND WAS ATTACKED BY THE COMMUNISTS AS A DEVIATING EXPONENT 
OF WEAK LIBERALISM . IN SYRIA, DURING THE COURSE OF 14 
YEARS AND NINE DIFFERENT COUPS, THE BAATH PARTY BOBBED UP AND 
DOWN . NOT UNTIL 1958, WHEN SYRIA'S COMMUNISTS WERE PLOTTING AN 
ARMED TAKEOVER, WERE THE BAATHISTS ABLE TO STAMPEDE SYRIAN CONSERVATIVES INTO 
ACCEPTING UNITY WITH EGYPT AS THE LESSER EVIL . SLIPPED BORDER 
. UNITY WAS OBTAINED, BUT AT A HIGH PRICE . ONCE 
IN CONTROL, NASSER INSISTED ON THE ABOLITION OF ALL PARTIES, BAATH 
INCLUDED, AND FIXED ON SYRIA THE SAME TIGHT CONTROLS AND SECURITY-POLICE 
SYSTEM AS IN EGYPT . DESIGNATED AS THE NORTHERN REGION OF 
THE UNITED ARAB REPUBLIC, SYRIA WAS FLOODED BY OFFICIOUS EGYPTIAN BRASS 
AND CRAMPED BY NASSER'S AUTHORITARIAN ECONOMIC SCHEMES . SYRIAN OFFICERS WHO 
PROTESTED FOUND THEMSELVES TRANSFERRED TO DUTY DEEP IN EGYPT ; CIVILIANS 
QUICKLY LANDED IN JAIL . AT LAST, EVEN MICHEL AFLAK REBELLED 
AND ORDERED THE BAATH CABINET MINISTERS TO RESIGN IN A BODY, 
SETTING THE STAGE FOR SYRIA'S ANGRY SECESSION FROM THE U.A.R . 
IN IRAQ THE BAATH PARTY FACED CRISIS FROM THE MOMENT DICTATOR 
KARIM KASSEM ESTABLISHED HIS BLOODY DICTATORSHIP IN 1958 . THE BAATHISTS 
PARTICIPATED IN AN ARMED REVOLT IN THE OIL CENTER OF MOSUL, 
WHICH KASSEM SAVAGELY SUPPRESSED WITH THE HELP OF IRAQ'S COMMUNIST MILITIA 
. A BAATHIST GROUP TRIED TO KILL KASSEM, BUT FAILED AND 
WAS BUTCHERED . FINALLY, LAST MONTH, BAATHIST POLITICIANS AND PRO-NASSER MILITARY 
MEN ORGANIZED AND EXECUTED THE COUP THAT RESULTED IN THE DEATH 
OF KASSEM AND THE SLAUGHTER OF HUNDREDS OF HIS COMMUNIST ALLIES 
. FOUR WEEKS LATER WITH FAR LESS BLOOD BAATHISTS AND PRO-NASSER 
OFFICERS IN DAMASCUS BRUSHED ASIDE THE CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT OF SYRIA . 
THE WAY AT LAST WAS OPEN FOR THE UNITY THAT EVERYONE 
HAD BEEN TALKING ABOUT . COMPLETE LESSON . THE DIFFICULTY, OF 
COURSE, IS THAT EVERYONE WANTS UNITY ON HIS OWN TERMS . 
EVEN JORDAN'S KING HUSSEIN, WHO IS ANATHEMA TO NASSER AND THE 
BAATHISTS, SAYS HE HOPES FOR EVENTUAL RECONCILIATION WITH HIS ENEMIES AND 
ADMISSION OF JORDAN INTO THE ARAB UNION . IF NECESSARY, HUSSEIN 
TOLD NEWSMEN, HE WOULD ABDICATE TO ACHIEVE ARAB UNITY . BUT 
HE QUICKLY ADDED, " PROVIDED IT'S UNITY ON A PROPER BASIS 
. " MICHEL AFLAK REPLIES : " JORDAN AND SAUDI ARABIA 
ARE WELCOME TO JOIN THE ARAB UNION, BUT NOT WITH THEIR 
PRESENT REGIMES AND RULERS . " IN CAIRO PRESIDENT NASSER HAS 
GIVEN EVERY INDICATION THAT HE INTENDS TO AVOID THE MISTAKES MADE 
DURING THE HURRIED AND ILL-FATED UNION WITH SYRIA . " THE 
MAIN REASON FOR THE LACK OF SUCCESS, " NASSER TOLD TIME 
LAST WEEK, " WAS THAT WE ACCEPTED COMPLETE UNION AND AMALGAMATION, 
INSTEAD OF FEDERATION AND SELF-GOVERNMENT IN BOTH STATES . " TO 
BEGIN DISCUSSION OF A BETTER SYSTEM, IRAQI AND SYRIAN DELEGATIONS FLEW 
INTO CAIRO FORTNIGHT AGO FOR PRELIMINARY TALKS WITH NASSER . LAST 
WEEK AN EVEN MORE HIGH-POWERED GROUP OF SYRIANS ARRIVED, HEADED BY 
MICHEL AFLAK AND PREMIER SALAH EL-BITAR, WITH THE INTENTION OF LAYING 
DOWN A SOLID FOUNDATION FOR THE PROPOSED UNITY STRUCTURE . THIS 
WEEK ANOTHER SET OF DELEGATES FROM SYRIA AND IRAQ WILL RETURN 
TO CAIRO, EACH BRINGING A DRAFT PROJECT FOR A NEW UNION 
. NOISE IN ALEPPO . IT SEEMS UNLIKELY THAT ANY KIND 
OF FEDERATION WITH CENTRALIZED AUTHORITY WILL EMERGE . WHAT IS POSSIBLE 
IS A LOOSE ALLIANCE, WITH HARMONIZED DEFENSE AND FOREIGN POLICIES . 
THERE MIGHT ALSO BE A DEGREE OF ECONOMIC COOPERATION AMONG THE 
THREE NATIONS, POSSIBLY INCLUDING EVEN YEMEN, WHICH IS SO BACKWARD THAT 
IT HAS BEEN DESCRIBED AS " RUSHING INTO THE 13TH CENTURY 
. " SUCH A SYSTEM OF SOVEREIGN STATES WOULD REPRESENT A 
TACIT ADMISSION THAT ARABS ARE NOT ALL ALIKE AND THAT THEIR 
INTERESTS DO NOT ALWAYS COINCIDE . THE FACT THAT THE TALKS 
BETWEEN SYRIANS, IRAQIS AND EGYPTIANS HAVE NOT YET PRODUCED ANYTHING CONCRETE 
IS LESS IMPORTANT THAN THE FACT THAT THEY ARE, AT LEAST, 
TALKING TO ONE ANOTHER AND NOT SCREAMING IMPRECATIONS AS THEY HAVE 
DONE SO OFTEN IN THE PAST . BUT ALREADY SOME ARABS 
WERE BECOMING IMPATIENT . THERE WERE PRO-NASSER DEMONSTRATIONS IN THE SYRIAN 
PORT OF ALEPPO . IN DAMASCUS A TOUGH YOUNG NASSERITE WHO 
HAD MOVED DIRECTLY FROM A PRISON CELL TO AN ORNATE GOVERNMENT 
OFFICE DISMISSED THE BAATHISTS AS IDEOLOGISTS, NOT POLITICAL LEADERS . " 
WE ARE GOING TO RUN SYRIA WITH NASSER THE WAY WE 
WANT, " HE SAID . " WE ARE GOING TO UNITE 
WITH EGYPT THE WAY NASSER WANTS . " BLASTING PATHS ? 
THE FACT THAT THE MIDDLE EAST IS SO CONSISTENTLY COMBUSTIBLE AND 
HAS SO LOW AN IGNITION POINT MAKES ITS AFFAIRS OF DEEP 
IMPORTANCE TO OTHER POWERS . IN THE OLD CITY OF JERUSALEM 
LAST WEEK, ARABS WERE JARRED BY RECURRENT DULL EXPLOSIONS IN THE 
BORDER AREAS, AND THERE WAS SPECULATION THAT ISRAELI DEMOLITION SQUADS WERE 
BLOWING UP OLD MINES IN NOMAN'S LAND TO CLEAR LANES FOR 
AN ADVANCE INTO JORDAN SHOULD KING HUSSEIN BE OVERTHROWN BY NASSERITES 
. ISRAEL IS NOT IMPRESSED BY SUGGESTIONS THAT EGYPT'S RULER HAS 
GIVEN UP HIS DOMINEERING WAYS . ONE OFFICIAL IN TEL AVIV 
WARNED : " NASSER FINDS IT DIFFICULT TO RESIST TEMPTATION . 
SUCCESS TURNS HIS HEAD, AND BEING BASICALLY A MILITARY MAN, HE 
THINKS IN TERMS OF EXTERNAL EXPANSION . " THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT 
SEES A HINT OF NASSER'S DREAMS OF GRANDEUR IN HIS YEMEN 
ADVENTURE, WHICH HAS ALREADY TIED UP ONE-THIRD OF HIS ARMY ISRAEL'S 
STATED POLICY IS THAT ANY CHANGE IN THE INTERNAL SITUATION OF 
HER ARAB NEIGHBORS AFFECTING THE SECURITY OF HER BORDERS WOULD FREE 
ISRAEL OF HER UNDERTAKING TO MAINTAIN THE STATUS QUO . MANY 
ARABS FEAR THAT ISRAEL WOULD MOVE TROOPS STRAIGHT TO THE WEST 
BANK OF THE JORDAN RIVER . IF HUSSEIN'S REGIME COLLAPSES . 
FAT OR THIN . BRITAIN'S PRESENT RELATIONS WITH EGYPT ARE CORRECT 
BUT COOL . WHILE RECOGNIZING NASSER'S PRE-EMINENCE IN THE ARAB WORLD 
AND HIS GREAT ABILITIES, THE BRITISH REMAIN WARY OF THE MAN 
AND HIS POLICIES . UNDERSTANDABLY, BRITAIN IS WORRIED ABOUT THE FUTURE 
OF ITS FEW REMAINING MIDDLE EAST COLONIES AND ITS IMPORTANT OIL 
INTERESTS . " NASSER'S OWN STAND ON OIL IS AMBIGUOUS, " 
COMPLAINS ONE DIPLOMAT . " OF COURSE, HE WOULD LIKE TO 
CONTROL OIL-RICH KUWAIT, BUT SO WOULD EVERYONE ELSE . " BRITISH 
AND U.S . OIL EXECUTIVES, THOUGH ADMITTING TO SOME UNEASINESS ABOUT 
NASSER'S INTENTIONS, SEE NO IMMEDIATE THREAT TO THE MIDDLE EAST'S DAILY 
FLOW OF 6,500,000 BBL . " WE HAVE LEARNED TO LIVE 
WITH POLITICAL INSTABILITY, " SAYS ONE OILMAN STOICALLY . THEIR FEAR 
IS NOT THAT THE WEST WILL LOSE ACCESS TO THE MIDDLE 
EAST'S PROVEN OIL RESERVES OF 194 BILLION BBL., BUT THAT ANY 
NEW ARAB GROUPING MIGHT START A CAMPAIGN TO REDUCE THE PRODUCER'S 
PROFITS . " ARAB UNITY MAY BE GOOD OR BAD FOR 
THE OIL INDUSTRY, " EXPLAINED ONE OFFICIAL . " IT DEPENDS 
ON THE GOALS OF UNITY AND THESE ARE DIFFICULT TO DISCERN 
IN THE PRESENT SITUATION . " DRAWN LINE . SHARPLY HOSTILE 
AFTER NASSER'S SUEZ NATIONALIZATION, AND NERVOUS AT HIS FLIRTATION WITH THE 
COMMUNISTS, U.S . POLICY MORE RECENTLY HAS TURNED IN NASSER'S FAVOR 
. RECALLING THE DAYS NOT SO LONG AGO WHEN CAIRO RADIO 
WAS SPOUTING UGLY LIES ABOUT THE U.S., WASHINGTON IS NOT INCLINED 
TO BE NASSER'S SPONSOR . BUT THE U.S . CAN COOPERATE 
WITH THE MAN WHOSE NAME IS ON EVERY ARAB LIP . 
OFFICIALLY, THE U.S . AIMS AT ASSISTING ANY GOVERNMENT, NO MATTER 
WHAT ITS FORM, THAT APPEARS TO BE SINCERELY AND EFFECTIVELY WORKING 
FOR INTERNAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE GOOD OF ITS PEOPLE . WITH 
INDIFFERENCE TO SOCIAL SYSTEMS, THE U.S . HAS AIDED EGYPT ON 
THE LEFT AND IRAN ON THE RIGHT, RECOGNIZED THE MONARCHIES OF 
JORDAN AND SAUDI ARABIA AS WELL AS PRO-NASSER YEMEN . BUT 
THERE IS A LINE DRAWN BY THE U.S . " IF 
THE COLD WAR IN THE ARAB WORLD THREATENS THE LARGE AMERICAN 
INTERESTS IN, SAY, SAUDI ARABIA, WE'LL HAVE TO TAKE A STAND, 
" SAYS A U.S . OFFICIAL . SIMILARLY, THE U.S . 
CONSIDERS ITSELF NONALIGNED IN THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN ISRAEL AND THE ARAB 
WORLD . WASHINGTON'S ATTITUDE TOWARD ARAB UNION IS STILL TIED TO 
A PRONOUNCEMENT MADE BY SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN FOSTER DULLES DURING 
THE EISENHOWER ADMINISTRATION . DULLES SAID THEN, AND IT WAS REPEATED 
LAST WEEK IN WASHINGTON, THAT THE U.S . LOOKS WITH FAVOR 
ON ANY MOVEMENT TOWARD ARAB UNION THAT IS NOT IMPOSED FROM 
OUTSIDE THE ARAB WORLD . GREAT COUPS . NASSER TODAY TAKES 
AN INDULGENT VIEW OF THE U.S . HIS EARLIER RESENTMENTS, HE 
SAYS, RESULTED FROM AMERICAN ATTEMPTS TO FORCE EGYPT INTO JOINING SUCH 
" IMPERIALIST " GROUPINGS AS THE MEDITERRANEAN DEFENSE ORGANIZATION AND THE 
BAGHDAD PACT . NASSER APPLAUDS THE PRESENT ADMINISTRATION IN WASHINGTON BECAUSE 
" KENNEDY TRIED FROM THE FIRST TO UNDERSTAND US AND TO 
BE REALISTIC WHEN FACING THE ARAB WORLD . UNDER JOHN FOSTER 
DULLES, THE U.S . WITHDREW ITS AID FOR THE ASWAN DAM, 
WE FACED BLOCKADE AND EVEN THE BLOCKING OF OUR OWN MONEY 
IN U.S . BANKS . / HOWEVER, NASSER CONCEDES, " IT 
SHOULD NOT BE FORGOTTEN THAT THE U.S . STOOD BY US 
IN THE UNITED NATIONS DURING THE SUEZ CRISIS, AND THAT LEFT 
A GOOD IMPRESSION . " PRESIDENT NASSER AND PRESIDENT KENNEDY HAVE 
BECOME CLOSE CORRESPONDENTS . " WE ARE VERY FRANK WITH EACH 
OTHER, " SAYS NASSER . " WE DON'T EXCHANGE DIPLOMATIC WORDS 
BUT EXPRESS HONEST AND FRANK OPINIONS . I BELIEVE WE HAVE 
BUILT UP A CONFIDENCE IN EACH OTHER . " THE CONFIDENCE 
EXTENDS TO U.S . AMBASSADOR JOHN BADEAU, WHO SPEAKS FLUENT ARABIC 
AND HAS UNLIMITED ACCESS TO NASSER, WHILE HIS BRITISH COUNTERPART SEES 
NASSER ONLY TWICE A YEAR AT FORMAL MEETINGS . THE COMMUNISTS 
ARE SO CONVINCED THAT THE U.S . CONTROLS EVENTS IN THE 
MIDDLE EAST THAT THE POLISH AMBASSADOR IN CAIRO STOPPED A U.S 
. DIPLOMAT AT THE ENTRANCE TO A LUNCHEON PARTY AND SAID 
BITTERLY : " I MUST CONGRATULATE YOU ON YOUR TREMENDOUS ACHIEVEMENTS 
IN IRAQ AND SYRIA . YOU HAVE MADE TWO GREAT COUPS 
. " JIGGLED LEG . AT WEEK'S END IN CAIRO, THE 
CONFERENCES ON ARAB UNITY DRONED ON TO THE ACCOMPANIMENT OF CIGARETTE 
SMOKE AND ENDLESS SMALL CUPS OF COFFEE . NASSER SAT IN 
ON THE NEGOTIATIONS, SERENELY CONFIDENT THAT WHAT FINALLY EMERGED WOULD BE 
WHAT HE WANTED . AT 45, NASSER'S HAIR HAS GREYED AT 
THE TEMPLES, AND HE HAS GIVEN UP TENNIS FOR THE LESS 
DEMANDING SPORT OF SWIMMING . HE APPEARS AS PHYSICALLY FIT AS 
EVER AND RETAINS HIS OLD NERVOUS HABITS OF JIGGLING HIS LEG 
WHILE SITTING, AND OF SMOKING FIVE PACKS OF L . & 
M.S A DAY ; LIKE MOST EGYPTIANS, HE CANNOT STAND THE 
LOCAL BRANDS . HE STILL WORKS TWELVE AND 18 HOURS AT 
A CLIP AND IS STILL THE ONLY MAN IN THE GOVERNMENT 
WHO CAN BE REACHED AT ANY HOUR . A CLOSE AIDE 
SAYS : " I'VE NEVER HEARD OF ANYONE GETTING CHEWED OUT 
FOR CALLING NASSER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT . I 
DO KNOW OF MANY WHO HAVE BEEN GIVEN UNSHIRTED HELL FOR 
NOT CALLING HIM WHEN SOMETHING HAPPENED . HE WON'T LIKE YOU 
TO SAY THIS, BUT IT IS STILL STRICTLY A ONE-MAN SHOW 
. HE HAS LOTS OF GOOD TECHNICAL HELP, BUT HE TRUSTS 
NO ONE ELSE WITH POLITICS . " EVEN MORE THAN RUSSIANS, 
ARABS EXPRESS THEIR FOLK WISDOM IN PROVERBS, RANGING FROM THE CAUTIONARY 
(SEE COVER) TO THE RACIALLY SKEPTICAL ( " BETTER THE TYRANNY 
OF THE TURKS THAN THE JUSTICE OF THE ARABS " ) 
. THERE ARE PROVERBS APLENTY TO FIT THE DREAM OF UNITY 
. TO THE AMBITIOUS NASSER, OTHER ARAB LEADERS MIGHT POINT OUT 
THE ONE THAT SAYS, " THE CAMEL DRIVER HAS HIS PLANS, 
AND THE CAMEL HAS HIS . " BUT PROVERBS ARE ECLIPSED 
BY POWER, AND LAST WEEK NOTHING WAS MORE CERTAIN THAN THAT 
WHATEVER UNITY SCHEME EMERGES IN THE MIDDLE EAST, MUST, FIRST OF 
ALL, BE SATISFACTORY TO GAMAL ABDEL NASSER . FOR OF ALL 
THE REVOLUTIONS INVOLVED, ONLY HIS IN EGYPT HAS SURVIVED AND PROSPERED 
FOR A FULL TEN YEARS . 