Some Of These Beni Kahtan Emigrated To
Egypt, Where The Historian Mesoudi Knew Them As Inhabitants Of Assouan.
The Wahabys Found Great Difficulty In Subduing This Tribe, Which,
However,
[P.452] subsequently became attached to the conquerors, and still
continues so.
The Beni Kahtan possess excellent pasturage, and breed
many fine horses: the vast number of their camels have become proverbial
in Arabia. The tribe is divided into two main branches, Es Sahama, and
El Aasy. In December 1814 the Kahans made an incursion towards Djidda,
and carried off the whole baggage of some Turkish cavalry, stationed to
protect the road between Djidda and Mekka: large parties of them
sometimes pasture their cattle in the province of Nedjed.
From Beishe to Aryn, in the country of the Abyda Arabs, is a journey of
five days, according to the Bedouin mode of travelling, but six or seven
days as the Kebsy pilgrims march. Beishe itself is about two days
distant from the western mountain. It is a journey of at least four days
from Beishe to the district of Zohran: all the Arabs from Taraba to
Beishe, and from thence westward, are cultivators or agriculturists;
those due south and east, are Bedouins, or wandering Nomades.
South-east of Beishe, four or five days, live the Dowaser Arabs during
the winter; but in summer they remove to the more fertile pasture-lands
of Nedjed, the nearest frontiers of which are only eight days distant.
They have no horses, but furnish to the Wahabys in their wars about
three thousand camel-riders.
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