There Was An
Uplifting Of Arms, And A Repeating Of Words That Sounded Like
Formulae, But There Were No Prostrations, And I Did Not Understand
That The Ceremony Was Of A Religious Character.
The tented Arabs
are looked upon as very bad Mahometans.
We arrived upon the banks of the river - not at a ford, but at a
deep and rapid part of the stream, and I now understood that it was
the plan of these men, if they helped me at all, to transport me
across the river by some species of raft. But a reaction had taken
place in the opinions of many, and a violent dispute arose upon a
motion which seemed to have been made by some honourable member
with a view to robbery. The fellows all gathered together in
circle, at a little distance from my party, and there disputed with
great vehemence and fury for nearly two hours. I can't give a
correct report of the debate, for it was held in a barbarous
dialect of the Arabic unknown to my dragoman. I recollect I
sincerely felt at the time that the arguments in favour of robbing
me must have been almost unanswerable, and I gave great credit to
the speakers on my side for the ingenuity and sophistry which they
must have shown in maintaining the fight so well.
During the discussion I remained lying in front of my baggage,
which had all been taken from the pack-saddles and placed upon the
ground.
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