Sa'ad the Demon was now in his glory. With what anecdotes the
occasion supplied him! His tongue seemed to wag with a perpetual
motion; for each man he had a boisterous greeting; and, to judge from
his whisperings, he must have been in every one's privacy and
confidence. Conversation over pipes and coffee was prolonged to ten
P.M., a late hour in these lands; then we prayed the
[p.233] Isha[FN#14] (or vespers), and, spreading our mats upon the
terrace, slept in the open air.
The forenoon of the next day was occupied in making sundry small
purchases. We laid in seven days' provisions for the journey; repacked
our boxes, polished and loaded our arms, and attired ourselves
appropriately for the road. By the advice of Amm Jamal[FN#15] I dressed
as an Arab, in order to avoid paying the Jizyat, a capitation tax
[FN#16] which, upon this road, the settled tribes extort from stranger
travellers; and he warned me not to speak any language but Arabic, even
to my "slave," in the vicinity of a village. I bought for my own
convenience a Shugduf or litter[FN#17] for which I paid two dollars. It
is a
[p.234] vehicle appropriated to women and children, fathers of
families, married men, "Shelebis,[FN#18]" and generally to those who
are too effeminate to ride. My reason for choosing a litter was that
notes are more easily taken in it than on a dromedary's back; the
excuse of lameness prevented it detracting from my manhood, and I was
careful when entering any populous place to borrow or hire a saddled
beast.
Our party dined early that day, for the camels had been sitting at the
gate since noon. We had the usual trouble in loading them: the owners
of the animals vociferating about the unconscionable weight, the owners
of the goods swearing that a child could carry such weight, while the
beasts, taking part with their proprietors, moaned piteously, roared,
made vicious attempts to bite, and started up with an agility that
threw the half-secured boxes or sacks headlong to the ground. About 3
P.M. all was ready-the camels formed into Indian file were placed
standing in the streets. But, as usual with Oriental travellers, all
the men dispersed about the town: we did not mount before it was late
in the afternoon.
I must now take the liberty of presenting to the reader an Arab Shaykh
fully equipped for travelling.[FN#19] Nothing can be more picturesque
than the costume, and
[p.235] it is with regret that we see it exchanged in the towns and
more civilised parts for any other.
