‘A Pilgrimage to Nejd, the cradle of the Arab race. A visit to the court of the Arab Emir, and "Our Persian Campaign."' [‎48] (91/334)

48
A Pilgrimage to Nejd.
[en. in.
out of the rock. It is difficult to understand liow
these tanks get filled, for they seem to have no
drainage leading to them, being on the contrary-
perched up generally on high ground. They are
now all dry, and the villagers have to send many
miles for their drinking water. All this countiy
belongs to the Hauran, and we are now in a Haurani
village called Glnzeh. The people are evidently
not pure Arabs, as many of them have light eyes.
We are being hospitably entertained by the
village Sheykh, who is an old acquaintance of
Mohammed's father's, and insists on setting all he
has got before us,—coffee, a plate of rice, barley for
the mares, and, what is more precious just now,
water for them as well as for ourselves. Hassan,
for such is his name, has a very pretty wife, who
was among the crowd which gathered round us on
our arrival at the village. She, like the women of
all these villages, made no pretence of shyness, and
was running about unveiled as any peasant girl
might in Italy. She was evidently a spoilt child,
and required more than one command from Hassan
before she would go home. The Sheykh has been
spending the evening with us. He is in great
distress about his village, which is in the last straits
for water. The cattle, as I have said, have all died,
and now even the beasts of burden which have to
go for the water are dying. The nearest spring is
at Bozra, twelve miles off; and if the donkeys
break down the village must die too of thirst. Ho