'The Penetration of Arabia a record of the development of Western knowledge concerning the Arabian Peninsula with illustrations from drawings, photographs, and maps by J. G. Bartholomew.' [‎136] (209/496)

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ARABIA
al-Hajar. Rumours of the hidden valleys of Hadra-
maut, which he heard thereabout, fired Wellsted's ready
imagination, and failing to overcome native opposi
tion on the south coast, he obtained the leave of the
Indian government to join the Asir expedition of
1835, and explore a way to Hadramaut overland.
But when news arrived that a great disaster had be
fallen the Egyptians in that spring, he bethought him
of Oman and its friendly ruler, and went to Maskat
instead, hoping he might reach his ultimate goal from
the eastern or northeastern side. The Imam, anxious
to stand well in the eyes of the Indian government,
and knowing, doubtless, that the fate of Wellsted's
project would be decided in the interior by another
authority than his, offered facilities, so long as the
Englishman should be within his sphere of protection.
Wellsted, therefore, made his exploration of Oman
under very favourable circumstances and without seri
ous risk until he tried to enter the northern territory,
where the Wahabi's writ ran more strongly than the
Imam's. In the first instance he took ship to Sur
and visited the extreme southwest of Oman, — a lean,
featureless land on the fringe of the great central
southern desert, which was then rather in the hands
of Bedawins than of the Imam. Since these same
Bedawins of Abu AH and Abu Hasan, who had
embraced Wahabism, had been attacked not above
half a generation before by British Sepoy Term used in English to refer to an Indian infantryman. Carries some derogatory connotations as sometimes used as a means of othering and emphasising race, colour, origins, or rank. expeditions,
acting in the interest of the Imam, this hardly seemed
a wise excursion for a British officer to make; but