But Now I Was To
Hurry, In The Midst Of Summer, After A Four Years' Sojourn In Europe,
During Which
Many things Oriental had faded away from my memory,
and-after passing through the ordeal of Egypt, a country where
The
police is curious as in Rome or Milan-to begin with the Moslem's Holy
Land, the jealously guarded and exclusive Harim. However, being
liberally supplied with the means of travel by the Royal Geographical
Society; thoroughly tired of "progress" and of "civilisation;" curious
to see with my eyes what others are content to "hear with ears,"
namely, Moslem inner life in a really Mohammedan country; and longing,
if truth be told, to set foot on that mysterious spot which no vacation
tourist has yet described, measured, sketched and photographed, I
resolved to resume my old character of a Persian wanderer,[FN#2] a
"Darwaysh," and to make the attempt.
[p.3]The principal object with which I started was this: to cross the
unknown Arabian Peninsula, in a direct line from either Al-Madinah to
Maskat, or diagonally from Meccah to Makallah on the Indian Ocean. By
what "Circumstance, the miscreator" my plans were defeated, the reader
will discover in the course of these volumes. The secondary objects
were numerous. I was desirous to find out if any market for horses
could be opened between Central Arabia and India, where the studs were
beginning to excite general dissatisfaction; to obtain information
concerning the Great Eastern wilderness, the vast expanse marked Rub'a
al-Khai (the "Empty Abode") in our maps; to inquire into the
hydrography of the Hijaz, its water-shed, the disputed slope of the
country, and the existence or non-existence of perennial streams; and
finally, to try, by actual observation, the truth of a theory proposed
by Colonel W. Sykes, namely, that if tradition be true, in the
population of the vast Peninsula there must exist certain physiological
differences sufficient to warrant our questioning the common origin of
the Arab family. As regards horses, I am satisfied that from the
Eastern coast something might be done-nothing on the Western, where the
animals, though thorough-bred, are mere "weeds," of a foolish price and
procurable only by chance. Of the Rub'a al-Khali I have heard enough,
from credible relators, to conclude that its horrid depths swarm with a
large and half-starving population; that it abounds in Wadys, valleys,
gullies and ravines, partially fertilised by intermittent torrents;
and, therefore, that the land is open to the adventurous traveller.
Moreover, I am satisfied, that in spite of all geographers, from
Ptolemy to Jomard, Arabia, which abounds in fiumaras,[FN#3] possesses
not
[p.4]a single perennial stream worthy the name of river;[FN#4] and the
testimony of the natives induces me to think, with Wallin, contrary to
Ritter and others, that the Peninsula falls instead of rising towards
the south. Finally, I have found proof, to be produced in a future part
of this publication, for believing in three distinct races.
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