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GLEANINGS

FROM THE

DESERT OF ARABIA

GLEANINGS

FROM THE

DESERT OF ARABIA

BY THE LATE

MAJOR R. D. UPTON

AUTHOR OF NEWMARKET AND ARABIA

LONDON
C. KEGAN PAUL & CO., I, PATERNOSTER SQUARE
1881

(The rights of translation and of reproduction arc reserved.')

PREFACE.

THE following work had only the advantage of .the
author's corrections as far as page 80, when, shortly
after the New Year, he was carried off by a sad and
sudden illness. From that point onwards the sheets
have been revised by a friend, with the exception of the
Arabic words and quotations. These latter have all
passed under the kind and careful supervision of the
well-known Semitic scholar, the Rev. W. H. Lowe, of
Christ's College, Cambridge.
W. H.
Easter, 1881.

CONTENTS.

PART I.
CHAPTER PACT-;
I. Bound to the East ... ... ... ... 5
II. From Iskanderoon to Aleppo— Beylan — " The Syrian
Gates" ... ... ... ... ... 20
III. Halab, or Aleppo ... ... ... .. ... 32
IV. Glimpses of Aleppine Life ... ... ... 49
V. Antioch ... ... ... ... ... ... 68
VI. Beirut — Valley of Bakkah — Lebanon and Hermon 79
VII. Shem, Ham, and Japheth .. ... ... S2
PART II.
I. Arabia ... ... ... ... ... 89
II. The Desert of Arabia ... ... ... 105
III. Of the Badaween of Arabia ... ,. ... 204
IV. Visit to the Sabaai-i ... ... ... 250
PART III.
I. The Arabian Horse ... ... ... ... 269
II. Notes on the Families in "Al-Khamseii" ... 319
III. General Description of the Keiieilan, or Arabian
Horse .. ... ... ... ... «o

viii Contents.
("HAI'TfiR PAGE
IV. Descriptive Account of Certain Anazaii Horses 344
V. Of the Horses of the Shammar Arabs .. ... 355
VI. Of the Arab Horse in Erack ... ... 359
VII. The Horses of Certain Bapaween Tribes, other
than Anazah ... ... ... . . 370
VIII. The Arab Horse in Syria ... ... ... 372
IX. Certain Remarks on Horses described as Syrian
and Baghdad Horses, noting some Points in
which both kinds differ from the arabian
Horse of the Desert, and some in which they
differ from each other ... ... ... 375
X. A Few Words about Written Pedigrees ... 378
XI. Notes and Remarks ... .., ... ... 3S9

PART I.

GLEANINGS
FROM THE
DESERT OF ARABIA.

CHAPTER I.
BOUND TO THE EAST.
On a bright day in the middle of October, after a stormy
night, we steamed out of the port of Marseilles, bound
for the East.
Storms are not unfrequent in the Mediterranean,
and one was ahead of us. We had a dirty night, during
which we made but little way. In the morning the ship
was put about ; we ran for Hyeres Roads, and dropped
anchor at noon. After a delay of twenty-four hours we
resumed our course. A run of twelve hours brought us
off Ajaccio, and at dawn the serrated outline of the
Corsican mountains was seen through the haze. We
passed through, on this occasion, the Straits of Boni
facio by the Middle Passage. The " Bear Mountain "
passage is a feature of interest, and subsequently I had

4 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
more than one opportunity of seeing the very singular
appearance of a gigantic bear on the top of the lofty
rocky shore. A high and conical-shaped group of rocks
on the coast of Sardinia is surmounted by some rocks-
of great size, which present an extraordinary and most
striking resemblance to a colossal bear.
After having coasted the fine seaboard of Sardinia,
on which island a considerable number of horses, small
in size, but of strong make, run wild, the little island
of Ustica is sighted, and shortly afterwards the Sicilian
shores, that part known as Conch d'Or (the Golden
Shell). Rounding a promontory of fine abrupt cliffs of
a red colour, Palermo was made in a heavy storm of
rain and thunder.
On account of the storm which had swept over the
Tyrrhcenian Sea, and because we were some hours
behind our time, the ship had been anxiously expected,
and on her arrival was speedily surrounded by boats
containing the friends of the numerous second-class
passengers ; as question and reply were rapidly ex
changed in different languages by a multitude of people,
there was much confusion of sound. The expectant
friends in the boats, with hands clasped, said they had
feared the ship had foundered. Those on board replied
that they had indeed met death face to face, and had
wellnigh given themselves up for lost ! The storm was
still over us, and heavy rain was falling ; but an amusing
scene occurred between a young priest and a boatman
who had brought the former from the shore.
The Sicilian mariner demanded more money. The

Bound to the East. 5
priest, who thought he had paid enough, but wishing to
stop the clamour of the boatman, was running to and
fro along the thwarts of the numerous boats collected
round the ship, stepping with vigorous bound from boat
to boat, disturbing their equilibrium, to the no small
discomfort of the fair occupants, and at the momentary
risk of falling into the water ; at one instant hurrying
forward to gain his ship, just on the point of starting, at
the next rushing back to make an increased offer to
satisfy the Sicilian mariner, who indignantly refused a
compromise, and on bended knees, and with strange
gesticulations, urged his claim for the full amount. This
Sicilian, with his black beard, hard features, marked
eyebrows, and dark brown eyes, of a red and yellow
skin, clothed with a coarse blanket, with a cap on his
head like those supposed to have been worn by the
Phrygians, was a strange-looking object. Was this, we
thought, the type of those who first from Troy came
with pious .<Eneas to the Sicilian shores ?
The weather cleared before sundown, and we enjoyed
for the first time this voyage a true Mediterranean even
ing. The air was soft and balmy, the atmosphere clear,
the moon bright, Venus, if possible, even brighter, and
appearing very large. The town, blazing with its many
•lights reflected in the still water, the mountains in parts
lighted up by the moon, and partly buried in deep
shade, constituted a most charming scene. The Bay of
Palermo, with its surrounding scenery, rivals that of
Naples. Early the next morning we entered the harbour of

6 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Messina. There is a grand facade, which extends the
whole length of the quay towards Charybdis. Oxen
were employed in drawing heavy loads ; donkeys and
mules in carrying burdens, and horses were used for
carriages of light draught. Soldiers were at target
practice ; convicts, in gangs, bathing under surveillance.
There are many fine buildings in Messina, both old
and new, and a considerable amount of shipping in the
harbour. As we were veering to go out, the Galileo
paddle-boat, with troops on board, and their band
playing, was slowly steaming in.
There are fine bold hills rising immediately behind
Messina, and from certain points extensive views of the
island itself, of the opposite coast, and seaward, can be
seen. The scenery at Palermo is grander ; but in the
hot season Messina enjoys a cooling breeze, owing to the
narrow straits, which draw a current of air ; whereas
Palermo is very hot from June to September. In Sicily
the clocks strike twenty-four hours instead of twelve
twice. Beautiful as the Straits of Messina are at all times,
they are seen to great advantage as you pass up or down
on a still night : the towns of Reggio and Messina, on
either side, being distinctly brought out by their numer
ous lights against the background of hill and mountain,
and reflected in the calm waters.
Mount Etna, whose peak and upper slopes are never
without snow, often presents a magnificent appearance
from the sea, rising grandly up in purple behind a lower
line of red rocky cliffs, and, from some positions, seem-

Bound to the East. 7
ing to ascend directly from the water's edge. On this
occasion the mountain was enveloped in clouds ; but
waiting my opportunity, pencil in hand, when for a few
moments only the mist was partly rolled away, I
depicted as best I could his snow-capped head ; on
several other occasions I have been more fortunate.
It is tolerably hot in October off the south coast of
Calabria ; the mountains present a barren appearance,
and there are some curious and precipitous rocks. Rapid
and marked changes in the colour of the sea off this
coast were noticed, from beautiful blue to light and
bright green, the lines of colour being very abrupt and
strongly marked.
The first point of Greece actually sighted I believe
to be Cape Gallo, a little south of Navarino ; shortly
afterwards Cape Matapan is seen and passed at no great
distance. Our course is between the mainland and the
Island of Cerigo, across the Gulf of Kolokythy, and
we run close in shore by Cape Maleo, or St. Angelo, a
fine headland which forms the eastern point of the
gulf. Here lives a hermit, much resorted to by the natives
for advice on certain subjects, who displays a red flag by
day and lights a beacon fire by night.
The town of Syra, in the island of the same name,
situate nearly midway between the mainland of Greece
and the western shore of Asia Minor, is our next port,
and is made about forty-eight hours after leaving Mes
sina. As seen from the sea, Syra presents a barren
appearance, as do also other of the Geeek islands, and

8 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
have not the beauty of those of the West Indies. The
town, which is on the east coast, and looks towards the
south and east, is built in the form of three triangles up
the steep slopes of the hills. The houses are for the
most part white, with a few of a yellow colour inter
spersed, and in the full blaze of the mid-day sun, the
town looks as if it were composed of toy-houses of packs
of cards, or that the houses were cut out of salt. A
small island, on which is a lighthouse, opposite the town,
in a great measure forms the harbour, and gives a
natural protection from the south as a small breakwater
does an artificial one from the north-east. There is a
good deal of shipping in the harbour. Ship-building is
also carried on to a considerable extent, judging from
the numbers of vessels on the stocks and of those docked
for repairs. Many of the vessels are painted dark and
light blue, others blue and green.
Passing Tenos and Khio, Smyrna is made by a run
of about twelve hours. The town is situate in a deep
and magnificent bay, surrounded by fine scenery and
backed by mountains. Quite the leading feature is the
fine old castle or citadel, in ruins, on a lofty hill above
the city, and commanding the harbour. The Greek
church and the numerous mosques with their domes and
tall minarets are conspicuous objects. On the northern
point of the bay is a district called " Cor-de-lio." The
hills on the southern side of the bay are beautiful both
in form and colour.
Occupied in sketching since early morning, we had
not noticed the arrivals on board, which were numerous

Bound to the East. g
and we found many scores of Turks and Greeks, men,
women, and children, scattered over the decks, lying or
sitting on their carpets, with their provisions and house
hold goods around them. An Arab of wealth and
position from near Baghdad, on his way home from
Constantinople, with a numerous retinue, and accom
panied by several Turkish officials, a black slave, a
Badawee, in desert costume, and an Arab horse, were
among the arrivals ; also a clergyman of the Church of
England. (We were now three Englishmen.) We found
his society very pleasant and instructive ; he was one
•of whom we had often heard, but never met till now :
once a soldier, now on his way to Jaffa, Bethel, the
Great Pyramid, and then to India, on a self-imposed
mission. Deeply interesting hours were passed, listening to
him while he expounded the language of the Great
Pyramid, and unfolded the mysteries contained in this
wonderful structure, hidden through so many ages.
Some of the hidden things of the pyramid may be
known to many, yet what the good man told to us he
wished to be made known to others. A tithe of them
I cannot relate, yet to hold my peace were shame.
The Great Pyramid is placed in the centre of the
earth, that is, a line of longitude drawn through the
centre of the pyramid leaves as many square miles of
the earth's surface to the west as there are to the east of
it. It stands four square, and indicates precisely the
four cardinal points, north, east, south, and west. It
states its own age. It contained an observatory, from

10 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
which the eye was directed to the pole star, not the one
of our time, but to that in the constellation of Draco,
which was the pole star when the pyramid was built,,
and this corroborates the date indicated by data found
within the entrance of the pyramid. The problem that
has baffled mathematicians in all ages was solved and
practically accomplished when the Great Pyramid was
erected. The circle zvas sqitared — a circle struck with a
radius equal to the vertical height of the pyramid has
a circumference of the same length as the perimeter of
the square base of the pyramid, and has an equal area.
The pyramid shows the exact length of the year and the
sun's mean distance. There are many other things,.
among them wonderful arrangements of weights and
measures, and several extraordinary coincidences. But
take the four grand features : the fixing of the site in
exactly the centre of the earth ; the position being true
to the four cardinal points ; the marking the direct
ascension of the pole star ; the squaring of the circle —
and, as our instructor said, let us ask ourselves who was
the architect ?
Not far from Smyrna is Voulnah Bay, used as a
quarantine station. The anchorage is good, and no better
water is to be found in the Mediterranean ; it was
formerly frequented, so we were informed, by English
men-of-war to take in supplies of fresh water. There
are a few small islands, on which are some buildings^
erected, I believe, for the accommodation of those who
have to submit to quarantine ; and we once saw a pasha
who had given up his government at Baghdad, and was

Bound to the East. 1 1
on his way to Constantinople, landed there, with his
large retinue and some twenty-five or thirty horses.
I will here recount a remarkable appearance which I
witnessed on a subsequent voyage to Smyrna, during a
short interval from my work, which I had been obliged
to make on pressing business. The weather had been
excessively hot, but after leaving the island of Syra,
about i p.m., 1 6th June, 1875, on board the steam-ship
A IpMe (Messageries Maritimes), we encountered a fresh
breeze from the N.E. At about 7.45 p.m. we were
making the island of Khio. The sun had set, but it was
quite light ; the western sky was crimson near the hori
zon, above of a peculiar light blue, observable at times
after rain ; some rather wild-looking clouds were flying
across ; the moon was up and bright ; when walking the
deck, in company with the ship's doctor and the only
first-class passenger, our attention was suddenly arrested
by a most extraordinary, but magnificent, appearance in
the heavens, which at the moment we took for a vivid
flash of lightning ; but the brilliant flash or streak of
light, which reached from near the zenith almost to the
horizon, was stationary, it did not vanish.
It was opposite to the moon, and in shape was like
lightning, forked and zigzagged. The upper part was
narrow and pale. About half way down there was a large
zigzag, broad, and of a red and yellow colour ; the lower
part was also thin and pale. The upper part began
to disappear about eight minutes after we had first
noticed the appearance, and passing very slowly away
westward, still retaining some of its original form and

12 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
¦colour ; after a considerable lapse of time it was finally
absorbed. The centre portion remained intact for half
an hour, and looked like a large Z-
The captain, the officers, and the Greek pilot, who
had known that sea for forty years, all stated they
had never seen so strange a sight, nor anything like it
before. One of the ship's officers on duty, and the pilot, who
were on the bridge, saw it from the commencement, pro
bably a few seconds before it was seen by us, who were
walking the deck. They both stated the flash came
suddenly, like a flash of lightning, and they both said
there was the appearance of an explosion in the centre,
where the big zigzag was. The ship's officer (I think
the officer of the watch) stated he heard a report. I
sent an account of this most strange appearance to the
Times by the first homeward mail, hoping that it might
elicit some discussion, and that perhaps some explana
tion might be deduced ; but I believe it was not published.
The coast of Asia Minor, from Smyrna to Iskande-
roon, is bold, rocky, and in many parts grand, and very
interesting from association, as indeed is also the Syrian
coast from Iskanderoon to Jaffa. The ruins of Ephesus
are only a few hours from Smyrna.
Leaving Smyrna in the afternoon, the beautiful
island of Cos is passed early the following morning, the
birthplace of Hippocrates, the father of medicine, and
who, be it remembered, practised homoeopathy as well as
allopathy ; and of Apelles, the great painter. The out
line of the mountains is fine, and the height very con-

Bound to the East. 13
siderable. The town of the same name has a pleasant
and picturesque appearance : the fort and other build
ings along the edge of the still water appeared of
dazzling white ; behind, green trees and a few slender
minarets are seen, and white houses, interspersed among
trees, run up the slopes at the foot of the mountains.
A few hours' steaming, and Rhodes is made, and from
the open roadstead there is a fine view of harbour, town,
and the country beyond. The walls of the town are
high, with battlements, and of a warm reddish colour.
One fine tower on the eastern side of the harbour is still
standing, the corresponding one is in ruins. The white
houses and minarets, some palms, cypress and other
trees in the town, are to be seen above and beyond the
walls, and the view is terminated by a gradual rising
line of hills. This island must' always be of great
interest for its truly historical associations, and above
all other events in its history for the heroic defence of
their stronghold by the Knights of St. John against an
overwhelming force of Turks under Solyman. In
Rhodes is the site of Schiller's noble poem, "The
Fight with the Dragon."
Passing the ruins of Patara, a run of about twenty-
four hours brought us off Cape Anamur, which is over
against Cyprus. It forms the western point of a wide
and beautiful bay, and when the cape is rounded (going
from west to east) a ruined city is seen. On the summit
of the lofty rock, which forms the cape, stands the
.ruins of a castle, which defended the town and, com
manded the bay. Lower and outer walls can be traced-

14 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
down its steep and rugged sides, and there appears to
be a wall running from the castle to the sea, which
possibly covered and protected an ascent to the fortress
from the bay. On gently rising ground, between the
beach and the foot of the mountains, which are grand,
rugged, and lofty, stand the roofless houses of the former
town, some larger, some smaller, but each seemed to have
stood in its own grounds or garden ; a raised roadway
appears to have entered the city from the east.
We dropped anchor off Mersyna before sunrise the
next day, and went on shore to visit the ruins of
Pompeiopolis, about five or six miles distant. It was
a glorious morning, and Mount Taurus looked very
grand : as the sun rose, his fine line of perpetual snow
was turned to rose-colour and gold. Two French
gentlemen accompanied us ; we rode on diminutive
horses, and our guide was a Toorkoman lad. Our friend
the English clergyman, who followed our party, was
more fortunate, as a really good horse had been placed
at his disposal. The lower plain of Cilicia, over which
we rode at a short distance from the sea, appeared to
be of a rich soil : shrubs grew luxuriantly, the myrtle
was in bloom. Partridges rise before us, and hares
cross our path. Pompeiopolis lies to the west of
Mersyna, and the plain on our right is bounded by a
range of abrupt hills.
We had to ford two rivers during our short journey,
and when we first sighted Pompeiopolis, the columns
appeared like a clump of dead palm-trees ; but as we
approached nearer, we were struck by their beauty and

Bound to the East. 15
freshness, and surprised at the extent of the ruins, which
are spread over a wide area.
These columns can sometimes be seen from ship
board off Mersyna. There are forty-five or fifty columns
standing, and most of them in a good state of preserva
tion. These are the remains of a double line of columns
which formed an avenue of about a third of a mile long-.
At the end near the sea is a very fine group of eight
columns, two of which are larger than the others, and
one of these is fluted. These larger columns possibly
formed part of a portico at the head of the avenue,
which enters upon an open circular space, with indica
tions of having been surrounded with walls fortified by
towers. On comparing notes with an English clergy
man who had travelled over Cilicia and other parts of
Asia Minor, visiting the sites of ancient cities in Kara-
mania, and who had a far better opportunity than time
allowed us of examining the ruins of Pompeiopolis, we
are inclined to adopt his view, that the circular space
between the avenue and the sea was formerly the
harbour, an artificial one. The columns at Pompeiopolis
are reddish-yellow in colour, the other ruins are of bluish
stone, and are scattered all over the plain.
I think a visit to these remains would reward those
interested in such relics, and a careful examination would
enable such to form a good idea of the size and character
of the city.
After having made a rapid sketch of the group of
columns standing near the sea, we breakfasted at noon
on bread and from a bottle of Bordeaux, and rode back

1 6 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to Mersyna, which is a place of no interest. Tarsus is
about twenty-five miles distant, and Adanah a similar
distance from Tarsus.
We left Mersyna in the evening, steamed easily
across the bay, and arrived at Scanderoon, or Iskande-
roon, in six or seven hours. It is situate in a magni
ficent bay, formed by the junction of the Cilician and
Syrian coasts. It is the only good harbour on the
coast of Syria ; but here the largest navy in the world
might ride in safety. It is the natural port of Aleppo :
grand hills and mountains clothed with trees and verdure
rise abruptly from the sea ; but unfortunately there are
on one side marshes, which render the dirty town of
Iskanderoon a very hotbed of malarious fever. The
heat here is greater than at any other port on the coast
of Asia Minor or Syria. The climate in the eastern
part of the Mediterranean is most enjoyable in the
autumn ; but the heat during the months of June, July,
August, and September is very great, and there is a dead-
ness and want of circulation of air towards the end of
the hot season along the south coast of Asia Minor
which is very oppressive. The climate changes con
siderably at a very slight elevation, and is there free from
the ill effect of malaria ; but it is unwise to sleep on
deck even, in the Mediterranean, so great is the evapora
tion ; fever and rheumatism are often the results from
persistence in such a course. I have heard it stated, on
the authority of engineers, that the marshes at Iskande
roon could, without much difficulty, be drained, and
outlets maintained to prevent a fresh deposit, and which

Bound to the East. 17
would render this locality as thoroughly healthy as any
¦ other on the coast. Now, many people will not go to
Iskanderoon, but prolong their journey to Antioch, and
embark at Latikiah. There is one thing always to be
remembered in Eastern and hot climates, plenty of grass
and water mean fever.
There can be but very little doubt the fever which
hangs over Iskanderoon is of a peculiar character, and
from all accounts more pestiferous and deadly than in
other places. I have heard it stated that a person who
has once been attacked by fever at Iskanderoon is
nearly certain to get another attack on revisiting the
town. There is also a story current of a whole ship's
crew having died on board ship. After some days it
was noticed from other vessels in the bay that no one
was seen to move on board this ship, and when she was
boarded, all her hands were found to be dead. This
extreme unhealthiness exists only, I believe, during the
hot season, from May to the end of September. I
have been at Iskanderoon in autumn and spring, and on
several occasions during the hot season. I spent one
night on board ship in the bay, but never remained at
night in the town, but slept either at Beylan or in tents
near that place in the mountains. On one occasion,
after having left Iskanderoon and ridden to Aleppo, two
or three of our servants were laid up with fever on our
arrival at that city, and my companion a day or two
later was down ; and on revisiting Iskanderoon, in which
place we had to spend the whole day, he was again
' attacked, and the fever returned continually at intervals c

1 8 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
for six months ; great pain in the head and eyes, also
in the region of the liver and the pit of the stomach
were leading features. Quinine between attacks should
be given, and a hot-water compress round the body
over the pit of the stomach afforded much relief, and, I
think, was in no small degree curative.
At Iskanderoon we had to disembark. We went on
shore at sunrise to make preparations for an early start
for Aleppo. Our Arab friend had already landed, and
was making his arrangements for departure ; and as he
had to go to Aleppo on his way to Baghdad, he wished
us to join his party ; but he could not leave until the
following day, whereas our preparations were soon
made, and our guide, one Michael Kenefahty, a mus
cular Syrian Christian of some six feet in height, a son
of Aleppo, but by calling a boatman of Iskanderoon,
was impatient for a start.
Three American families and a young doctor, who
had been fellow passengers, also landed here to go to
their respective mission stations, and the doctor to
examine the country to report upon a suitable place for
an hospital in connection with American missions. Our
horses were ready, Michael's saddle-bags stuffed with
provisions, and at 3.30 p.m. we commenced our journey.
Our friend the English clergyman, who had landed to
see us off, as the steam-ship did not start until late in
the evening, walked by our side a little way on the road
to give us a start. Had he not a nobler duty before
him he would have liked to have accompanied us.
Kind old gentleman, well into years, but in full

Bound to the East. 19
vigour of mind and body. He had left the comforts
of home to obey his Master's command, and to carry
His Word throughout the breadth of India, to confront
the priests of Buddha and Bhramma, to try to persuade
those of The Truth and who could not see by Faith, by
the hard tangible records taught by the Great Pyramid.
An unexpected meeting, a few days of intercourse not
likely to be effaced by time, and we part to pursue our
different roads — he on his mission, and what a mission !
— -we also had our work before us: we thought it a
mission too, for ours was not a journey of pleasure ;
its object I care not now to mention, hereafter it may
become apparent — if not, let it remain unknown.

CHAPTER II.
FROM ISKANDEROON TO ALEPPO — BEYLAN — "THE
SYRIAN GATES."
The afternoon was cool ; some rain fell, but we had a
pleasant and rapid ride up Mount Amanus to Beylan, a
town some eleven miles from the sea, situate at the
pass known as " The Syrian Gates."
The road from Iskanderoon, after the marshes have
been crossed, passes over the crest of the hills and
attains a height above Beylan, to which you descend
rather abruptly. The town, built upon the steep sides
of two mountain peaks, has a very picturesque ap
pearance. It contains a Khan, which here means an
inn and post-house — the same word is used to express
"exchange" or "mart," a place where merchants con
gregate, and from whence are issued quotations of the
money market — a very fair bazaar, and the residence of
the Kaimacam, an official equivalent to a lieutenant or
sub-governor in the province ruled by a Pasha.
The Khan, which is at the entrance of the pass as
you approach from Iskanderoon, is one of some pre
tension, as we subsequently found from experience : it

From Iskanderoon to Aleppo — Beylan. 21
is built on two sides of. a square, and has an upper
storey and wide covered verandah, to which you ascend
by a contrivance half ladder, half stairs, into which
several good-sized rooms enter; these are quite empty,
can be swept out for you, and if you have carpets and
cushions you can be made quite comfortable in a few
minutes. The yard below, plentifully supplied with
good water, was at this time full of horses and caravans,
asses and mules ; the stabling is partly underground
and partly underneath the buildings.
The view is very fine ; you look through a deep
gorge, the precipitous sides of which are well clothed
with trees and verdure, down on to the blue water of
the Bay of Iskanderoon, across to the opposite coast of
Cilicia, and on to the snow line of Mount Taurus. A
stream runs at the bottom of the gorge, hundreds of
feet below ; rills of sparkling water run along the
mountain side close to you, and the murmur of running
water is ever in your ears. A pure air, delightful climate,
beautiful scenery, mountains, wood and water, render
Beylan a charming locality.
We were gazing on this fair scene when the gun was
fired from the Turkish man-of-war in the harbour, which
announced to all good Mussulmans that they might eat ;
for this was the Ramadan (fast), and such at this season
do not eat between sunrise and sundown. Our repast
was announced at the same instant. A parting look at
the West, as when the " Syrian Gates " are passed the West
and the sea, the road to home, are shut out from sight,
for our way is to the East, and when the sun shall appear

22 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
again we expect to see a far different scene, and that we
shall be some six hours on our journey.
Punctually at n p.m. we were ready to start, but
an hour elapsed before our baggage animals appeared
and were packed. We thought the delay vexatious, yet,
let me here remark, this was surprising promptitude for
Syria ; as a rule, if you get off five or six hours after the
appointed time you have not much cause for complaint,
especially at the commencement of a journey, and on
one occasion, I remember, having arranged to start on
a long journey early in the morning, we did not get off
until sundown.
It was a beautiful moonlight night, but the gentle
breeze blew chilly through " the pass," and it was quite
cold as we ascended to the summit of Mount Amanus.
That gained, we at once descended the slopes on the
opposite side. Diverging from our road to the right
runs the way to Antioch, a deep gorge being between
the two roads, widening until it finally enters on to the
plain of Antioch. We tried in vain to penetrate with our
vision the depths, but we fancied now and then we could
see telegraph-posts. Lights we certainly saw in the
distance, apparently at regular distances ; these we sub
sequently found were camp-fires of Turkoman shepherds
and of caravans. We met one solitary man, armed,
followed by a boy, on the mountains ; our guide,
Michael, charged this man, and explained his conduct by
saying "he was a robber — one thief." The robber,
although driven against the rocky side of the mountain,
did not seem to be at all disconcerted. Michael could

From Iskanderoon to Aleppo. 23
speak a little English— "no plenty speak, but little;"
we were at a loss to understand his calculation of time,
but found out eventually that what he called three
o'clock was a distance which it would take us three
hours to accomplish.
At the foot of Mount Amanus we stopped at a
Khan for breakfast. It was a long earth building, in
which some sixty people had passed the previous night ;
there were still some few asleep, and one sick person
moaning — probably he was laid up, poor fellow, with
fever contracted at Iskanderoon. We were almost
shivering from the cold, and were glad to sit by a
wood fire hastily kindled on the floor, although it filled
the hut or Khan with smoke.
We arrived about five, and at six, after the horses
had eaten their barley, we mounted. Our way was along
a sandy, stony, rocky, ill-defined course, through scrub :
before us a vast plain ; immediately behind us, Mount
Amanus, whose purple heights were tinged with rose
under the influence of the rising sun.
We were now traversing the upper or northern part of
the great plain of Antioch, which, as well as others in
the north of Syria, is covered in the spring and summer
by numerous families of Kurds and Turkomans, who
descend from the highlands to feed their flocks, and
is traversed by numerous caravans ; and it is a won
derful sight to see, on the western slopes of Mount
Amanus, the meeting of many hundreds of camels,
going loose in opposite directions, under charge of a
very few Arabs, apparently mixed up inextricably, yet

24 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
threading their way through the two opposing streams,.
guided only by the Arab cry, so well known to and
understood by the camel, of " Hohe, Hohe."
In Syria the changes of temperature are sudden and
very great, and although it was the end of October, the
sun was intensely hot. Hour after hour passed, and we
were still riding across the plain ; after having forded a
river twice, with steep banks and muddy bottom, and
crossed it again by a causeway of stone and a series of
stone bridges, rather narrow and without parapets, and
not in the best order, where the water is deep and swells
out over the plain into a wide swampy expanse, we
approached what we thought had been the boundary of
the plain, but a pass through the low hills revealed
another, apparently boundless.
There is another Khan for travellers rather more
than half way between the foot of Mount Amanus and
the Afrine river, under some low hills, and close by
one of the most delightful springs of water I have ever
seen. This comes out of the rock, forms a large pool of
many yards in length and breadth, through which the
road, or rather track, runs ; it is as clear as crystal, cold
and refreshing, and delicious to the palate, and yet
devoid of hardness. Horses and other animals delight
in it. We did not stop here on this occasion, but hastened
on for the Afrine, some three or four hours distant, and
passed a Hamman, or bath, a medicinal one in a large
rock, where a sick man was bathing, while another
anointed him with what looked like mud. After a
slight rise, a sudden descent to the left brought us to-

From Iskanderoon to Aleppo. 25
the Afrine, a broad but, at this time of the year,
shallow river of clear and sparkling water, but after the
winter rains, and in early spring, it is often impassable,
and caravans are often detained for many days.
The Khan is on the opposite or right bank of the
Afrine ; it is surrounded by a wall, which encloses a
large extent of ground. We dismounted, and mats of
bamboo were spread for us under some willow trees.
We had some tea, and Michael recommended sleep, as
we were to stay here until 8 p.m., to take advantage of
the moon to light us over the mountain pass, some four
or five hours distant. He showed the way by stretching
himself full length on his back, and soon gave audible
indication of sound sleep. We tried to follow his example,
but without success. The tinkling of bells was in our
ears, and we sat up. Caravan after caravan passed to or
from Iskanderoon, the sound of the bells on the baggage
animals being heard a long way off. We looked at the
Turkish officer, who was sitting on a chair smoking a
Narghileh and listening to an irregular horseman
seated opposite to him, their knees almost touching.
After awhile the officer rose and mounted, saluting us
courteously before he rode away. After this the irre
gular horseman mounted, and patrolled once or twice to a
distance of about two hundred yards ; having finished
this duty, if such it was, as a compromise, he dismounted,
fastened up his horse, and sang, accompanying his voice
by playing on a small kind of guitar, for the amusement
of those who keep the Khan. Michael was still asleep ; the
sun was getting low. Now and then a mounted traveller

26 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
rode in ; one, a tall, respectable, sedate Mussulman, tied
up his horse, looked him over, took his pistols from his
saddle, fed his horse, washed his hands and face, said
his prayers, and prepared to eat.
We also arose, and for the place and under the
circumstances made rather an elaborate toilet, and
dined in the Khan on a roast chicken and two boiled
eggs. There were several persons in the Khan ; one of
those in attendance could speak French, and another
Italian. Grapes we brought with us ; at this time of
the year, from Smyrna to the Euphrates, you may, and
people do, feast upon grapes morning, noon, and night
— thin-skinned, luscious, delicious grapes.
All day we had been meeting caravans carrying
wheat from Aleppo to Iskanderoon. Some of these are
composed entirely of camels, which are smaller and
higher-bred-looking animals than those generally in use
in India. Each animal goes loose, and not confined in a
string by a cord from the nostril of one animal to the
tail of the preceding one, as is the custom in India.
Other caravans are made up of horses, or asses and
mules. These are also all loose, and, except where the
track may be narrow or difficult, spread over the ground,
often showing a wide front, each animal selecting his
own path, twenty or more abreast, or in any way they
please. These horse and mule caravans perform the
journey in much less time than do those composed of
camels. Nearly every animal is decorated with bells :
in some cases there is a large bell and a smaller one
suspended from the neck ; the harness and trappings of

From Iskanderoon to Aleppo. 27
others are studded all over with small round ones. The
sound from all these many bells is rather pleasing than
otherwise, and after a weary ride throughout a dark
some night, the first tinkling of these bells about dawn
is welcome music to your ears.
Many of the horses in these caravans show some
blood ; and we remarked, after many months' ex
perience of these caravans, that the legs and feet of the
horses were in better order than those of either the asses
or mules !
We mounted and left the Afrine at 8 p.m., and
after having ridden for more than two hours in the dark,
up a gradual ascent, we entered a narrow gorge, with
lofty and precipitous cliffs on both sides, and skirted
by what appeared to be the deep, rocky bed of a
mountain torrent. But in the deep bed are immense
rocks, and deep chasms where water might be still and
deep — vast caverns and precipitous walls of rock, looking
white and startling by the light from the moon, which
now had appeared in full glory above the rocky heights.
Now and then narrow strips of sand about two feet
wide intervene between the masses of rock on the banks
of the torrent, along which we canter until we come to
rocks again. Up, up we go : the cliffs or precipices are
higher, glistening white in the dazzling moonlight;
•caverns yawn in the waterless river. Here our way
is over great blocks or large slabs of white stone,
white above, white on every side ; on a sudden a chasm
with perpendicular walls is seen on our right, the moun-

28 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
tain having been abruptly rent in twain. An angry
torrent would seem at some time to have torn down the
gorge at right angles to the dry river, but instead of
entering it, it ended in what appeared to be a frightful
abyss. Here, thought we, must have been a whirlpool ;
the torrent, suddenly checked, would whirl round and
round, and finally dash over the barrier of rock which
separated the pool from the river-course. At times
large rocks and slabs of stone are surrounded by sand,
as on the seashore when the tide is out. Our way is
still upwards, through a maze of mountains, chasms, and
precipices, until we grow almost bewildered. As we
near the summit of the mountain, the narrow gorge
ceases ; the deep channel of the now dry river-course
opens out into a wide expanse, resembling a glacier, but
of white rocks. We wind round to our left, leaving that
which had appeared the summit of the mountain on our
right, and proceed up the course of the glacier of stone.
The summit is almost gained, the glacier widens, we
appear to be in the midst of a sea of white stone ; our
way is tortuous and wonderful in the extreme, and we
glide round the white rocks like eels. A sigh of relief
from man and horse escape when the summit is gained.
A sandy track leads to a village called Termaneen,
situated on the northern end of a plain, formerly called
" Imhal," but now " Halkar " (a ring), from its circular
shape, the plain being completely enclosed by a zone of
rocky hills. It is said that here Zenobia, Queen of Pal
myra, had drawn up her forces to dispute the progress of
the Emperor Aurelian ; but the passes were gained or

Froth Iskanderoon to Aleppo. 29
forced, and on this plain was fought the battle which
proved so disastrous to Zenobia.
We entered a village, partly in ruins, near to Ter-
maneen, and stopped at the house of a Mussulman
friend of our guide, who was also the Imaum. We dis
mounted in a large court, and our horses soon had their
noses into their bags of barley. How they grind this
hard and nutritious grain ! how they seem to enjoy it !
how they thrive ! and what an amount of work do these
little horses do ! It is a pleasure to see them feed.
It was now past midnight, but our host arose, turned
out his four wives and his children ; their apartment was
swept and re-carpeted, and we had tea while the horses
were feeding.
On leaving the village our way was over a maze of
¦crags, and up and down abrupt ridges and descents on to
a wide plateau, over which rocks are scattered in all direc
tions. On the left, going to Aleppo, is seen Jabal Simaan
(the mountain of Simon), the highest point in the imme
diate neighbourhood ; it stands up distinctly and alone.
On the summit was the pillar upon which the hermit
lived, and from which he preached. It was erected on
the site of a pagan altar, steps up to which were cut in
the solid rock ; a drain or duct had been constructed to
carry off the blood of the victims sacrificed, and may
still be seen. Subsequently a convent was erected in
commemoration of the hermit, an octagon of columns
was built round the hermit's pillar, and a church erected
on the opposite side to the convent. The octagon still

30 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
stands, I believe. The pillar was thrown down by the
earthquake in the reign of Justinian. John Stylites
died A.D. 430.
A monk from the convent of Jabal Simaan proceeded
every year to preach to the people of Aleppo, arriving
there on the Monday before Ash- Wednesday.
For several hours we rode over a rocky plain, a high
tableland, sometimes going down long swelling waves
of land to ascend similar ones. It was quite cold, and
we found great difficulty in keeping awake ; indeed, we
dropped asleep occasionally. The sun rose at six
o'clock, and found us still struggling over these waves
of land and rocks, and a keen wind from the east in out
faces was something more than refreshing. We heard
the musical tinkling of many bells, and presently met
a caravan, then another and another. A deep purple hill
was before us, apparently quite close ; it took us a good
hour to gain the summit : between that crest and our
selves were a succession of undulations merged into one
by the purple shade. Nearly two hours more passed on
before Aleppo was in view — we had missed seeing the
light from the minaret in the citadel (the minaret is
visible from some point about twelve miles distant) —
when, on reaching the crest of the last rock-topped
eminence, down whose eastern slope we wound, Aleppo
burst upon our delighted eyes. A vast city of stone
houses, with numerous larger buildings, and tall minarets
sparkling in the sunlight, was spread out before us, set in
a zone of beautiful green, formed by the fresh-looking
gardens on the outskirts, the grand old citadel in the
midst of the city standing up proudly on its lofty mount.

From Iskanderoon to Aleppo. 31
Crossing the river Khalus by a stone bridge and
passing through Azizieh, we called at the English Con
sulate. Her Majesty's representative being absent for a
few days on business, our guide conducted us into the
town, to the house of a Syrian, Dragoman to the Con
sulate. This gentleman very kindly offered to put us
up, and entertained us most courteously until the return
of the Cons'ul. We dismounted in a narrow street, and
proceeded through a long narrow passage, and under a
very low doorway through a dark passage, and entered
a small court with a tank and fountain in the centre.
We were refreshed with coffee and a cigarette, and
after a substantial meal at noon our host conducted us
to his stable to show us his horses.
In the afternoon we went to the Consulate, situate
in the Azizieh on the banks of the Khalus. The house
suffered considerably by the earthquake in 1872, and
many of the rooms were in ruins. There is a rock some
thirty feet high or more above the river at this point,
which on fine evenings is crowded with women in white
enjoying the breeze off the water. We returned to the
city (which is lighted up during Ramadan) for dinner,
and during the repast heard the Imaums singing as
they walked through the streets, inviting all good Mo
hammedans to prayers.
On the return of the English Consul we were trans
ferred to his house, receiving the greatest hospitality
and never-failing kindness from our host and hostess
And here, my friends at Aleppo, let me express our
warmest thanks.

CHAPTER III.
HALAB, OR ALEPPO.
When Sultan Selim passed through Aleppo on his
way to the conquest of Egypt, he remarked how well the
city was adapted, by situation, for commerce, and felt
assured it ought to take the place of Tadmor.
Selim assembled the principal men of Aleppo, and
thus addressed them : " Your city is well placed for
commerce, but you are all soldiers and know nothing
of mercantile affairs. The Jews are a people who
thoroughly understand trade ; see to it, let Jews be
collected. On my return from Egypt, if I do not find a
colony of Jews, and commerce fairly established, I will
cut off your heads." Jews were accordingly invited to
settle at Aleppo. Some came from Spain, more from
Italy, and from that date Aleppo became a commercial
city ; and even now, as then, the greater part of the
trade is in the hands of the Jews, who now number six
thousand souls. Most of these have foreign protection,
and if a Jew can give proof that his father or his paternal
grandfather came from India, Gibraltar, Malta, or any

Halab, Or Aleppo. 33
English possession, he can claim the right of citizenship
by English statutory law.
It is stated that among the Jewish population Is
a family of the name of Dayan, now very poor and
obscure, but known to be lineally descended from King
David. The best view of Aleppo is obtained as you approach
it by the Iskanderoon or the new Kelis road : from the
former you have a more extensive view, but from both a
charming picture. Some maintain that the city is seen
to the greatest advantage as it is approached from the
desert, but after having looked at it from all sides I
adhere to the opinion I have expressed.
Aleppo is some ninety-five miles from Iskanderoon,
or Alexandretta, its port, by the direct road, consider
ably more by way of Antioch. It is situate on a hign
tableland, and only a few hours from the desert on the
east and south ; it is built upon several hills, and sur
rounded by rocky and steep eminences at a radius of
about one or two miles from the city. A line of hills or
cliffs about four or five miles from Aleppo runs across
the desert in an easterly direction, and terminates at
Messkene, the ancient Balis, on the Euphrates. On the
north-west, at a distance of from sixty to eighty miles,
the fine range of Mount Amanus is to be seen, which In
winter is covered with snow.
Aleppo is built entirely of stone. The ancient city,
in which is the citadel, is surrounded by walls, gates,
and partly by a moat, but the walls are not now perfect;
. ,.-,\o ¦:¦:. ' D

34 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Outside this, a younger town also built of stones and
enclosed by walls and gates, has sprung up, and is called
"Jedaide" (or New Town), and beyond this are suburbs,
which somewhat detract from the appearance of the city.
About half a mile from the gate by which you enter to
the Christian quarter of the Jedaide, a new suburb has
been formed within the last few years, consisting, with
one exception, of large detached and handsome stone
houses. It is called Azizieh, In honour of Sultan
Abd-ul-Aziz, and there some of the consuls have their
residences. The streets in Aleppo are narrow, but are better in
that and other respects than most Eastern towns. They
are all paved, but are very slippery. The bazaars in
Jedaidd are roofed with lattice-work ; in the city they
are more lofty, and have permanent arched roofs with
air-holes or apertures for light, but which also admit the
rain. The shops in the city are supplied with better
commodities than those of the Jedaide. Very many of
the private houses are good and spacious. You enter
them usually by a very small door, so low that you have
to stoop, and pass along a narrow dark passage to another
door, which opens into a court, more or less spacious,
with a cistern or fountain in the centre and adorned with
shrubs and sometimes trees. Around the court, which
is open to the sky, are the various apartments of the
family, and many of the houses have an upper storey
and pretty balconies with shutters built out from the
sides of the houses and protruding over the roadway
beneath. Those that are on the town wall add con
siderably to the picturesque effect and give colour.

Halab, or Aleppo. 35
The Serai, where is the residence of the Pasha (the
Governor-General), is in the centre of the city and just
outside the old fort or citadel ; it surrounds a large court
yard. Here also merchants congregate as on the Royal
Exchange in London ; here also are the post and tele
graph offices. The old citadel, the marked and leading
feature in Aleppo, is built on the summit of a very high
large mound ; the slopes are partly faced with stone ; the
whole is surrounded by a broad and very deep ditch.
There is a lofty minaret within the walls of the citadel,
which can be seen at a distance of twelve miles. This
ancient fort is the most prominent feature in Aleppo ; it
frowns down from its lofty situation upon the city at its
base ; seen at a distance it towers high up far above the
city, of which it is the centre.
When the Arabs attacked Aleppo, under the com
mand of Obeidah, a few years after the death of
Mohammed, and after the city had been taken, this old
citadel offered a stout resistance, and was at length
captured by surprise. Dames, an Arab of extraordinary
stature and strength, clothed to resemble a bear, climbed
the steep slopes by night, accompanied by a few fol
lowers, and then scaled the walls by getting on the
shoulders of his companions, who made a pyramid of
themselves for that purpose.
There are numerous mosques in Aleppo ; many of the
larger ones stand in their own gardens, and all have
tanks within their precincts for ablutions. We were told

36 • Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of the following legend :¦ — When Aleppo was taken by-
the Arabs under Obeidah and Khaled, the sword of
God (a few years after the death of Mohammed), a-
Muezzin was sent to the top of the tower of the Church
of Zacharias to call Mussulmans to prayer. He fell
down and was killed ; the following day or night another
met the same fate ; a third was ordered to ascend the
tower on the following evening, but before making the
attempt, he entered the body of the church and prayed
that his life might be spared for the sake of his family..
The legend says that one in the form of an aged man
with a white beard appeared to the Mussulman suppli
cant and said, " I am Zacharias," and told him his prayer
had been heard, and that if he would save the church
from desecration, and would recite from the top of
the tower certain sentences from the Greek Liturgy,
his life would be spared." The Muezzin consented, and
learned from the apparition a certain formula. We
were told that the custom is still kept up ; that a
Muezzin repeats every twenty-four hours, at midnight,
from the minaret at the former Church of Zacharias,
certain words in Arabic which convey the meaning of
those taught by the apparition.
The Church of Zacharias is now the principal mosque
in Aleppo. The burial-grounds are very numerous, and may be
said to surround Aleppo, through which you must pass
to go to or from the city ; others are even beyond the
river Khalus, which at some places runs at a con
siderable distance from the city. The Latin (Roman,

Halab, or Aleppo. 37
Catholic) cemetery is the only one enclosed by walls ; it
is situate between the Jedaide" gate and Azizieh. There
are large gardens on all sides, and the olive is abundantly
cultivated. The barracks are on the summit of a rock over
looking the town, and form a large quadrangle, in which
6000 troops have paraded.
Aleppo has been visited by earthquakes at an
interval of fifty years ; the last occurred in 1 872, but, as
it happened in the daytime, fortunately very few lives
were lost. In 1822 the earthquake was very severe; it
took place during the night, and a thousand people were
killed. The city suffered much. The debris was carried
outside the walls and thrown up in large heaps, in many
places leaving only a roadway of twenty, or thirty feet ;
this gives the appearance of earthworks thrown up
hastily during a siege.
Before the earthquake of 1822 It Is stated there was
a Hebrew inscription in the citadel, showing that Joab
the son of Zeruiah had taken the town from Hadarezer,
king of Zobah.* After the earthquake, we were in
formed, the Russian Government sent a Rabbi, a great
savant, to seek for the stone on which was the Hebrew
inscription. Notwithstanding the site was known, the
stone has Hot been recovered.
In one of the gateways of the old city is a highly
polished piece of marble, about five feet long,' two to
three feet wide, and about one foot in thickness, and
which . has been built into one of the walls without
* See 2 Sam. viii. 3-9 ; also I Chron. xviii.

38 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
reference to the position in which the stone was
originally intended to be placed. It is said that this
is the only Greek relic in Aleppo.
The Saracenic remains are fine. Among such are
the city walls, towers, and gates, gateways into many of
the Khans, and some other buildings. But by far the
finest specimen is the grand entrance tower to the
citadel on the walls. This is a magnificent building,
with several fine gateways, and a beautiful window,
which, it is said, was added by Malek-ed-Dahar the
Arab, who was the adopted son of Saladeen the Kurd.
The window still bears the name of Malek-ed-Dahar ;
it is said it was his favourite seat, from whence he could
look down into the heart of the city.
The moat, which is of a great depth, is spanned by
a bridge of several elegant arches springing from high
piers ; there is also another tower at the head of the
bridge, on the exterior side of the ditch.
Aleppo is a very ancient city. Tradition says-it was
visited by Abram when on his way from Ur of the
Chaldees to Canaan, and that on the mound or hill on
which the citadel is built, he caused a cow to be milked
daily for the benefit of the poor inhabitants. Halab, its
Arabic and proper name, signifies " milk," and is thought
to have been derived from this event. It is most
probable that the Hebrew patriarch did pass this spot,
which is now, as it must have always been, in the
regular route from the Euphrates to Syria.
Arabic is essentially the language of Aleppo. The
population amounts to about 100,000 souls, perhaps

Halab, or Aleppo. 39
rather fewer now — formerly, it is said, there were more
than double that number — and is composed of Jews,
Turks, Armenians, Greeks and Syrians, both Christian
and Mussulman, some Arabs, and a few Europeans, and
offers a tempting opportunity for the study of eth
nology. The elements of the ancient Syrian or Aramaic
stock, and of the Greek, Arab, and Tartar invasions, are
tolerably well defined by physical appearance and cha
racter, and to some extent by habits and occupation.
Among the mass of the people there is a strong Arabian
feeling : many, both of high and low degree, pride them
selves on their Arab descent ; some, whose settled life is
of more recent date, whose grandfathers may have been
Badaweeh, yearn with affection towards their brethren of
the desert, and ancestral pride sparkles from their eyes
when they speak, maybe, of their Anazah origin. The
Arab would naturally assimilate better with the ancient
and kindred Semitic stock of Syria than would either
Greek -or Turkoman. Many of the Armenians find
employment in domestic service, which .to the Syrian
is very distasteful.
Aleppo is a clean city. The vegetable refuse is
carried out daily in panniers by caravans of asses, and is
put upon the land and the gardens around and in the
neighbourhood of the city. Dogs here, as they have
done in Eastern cities from time immemorial, follow
their native avocation of scavengers, and consume the
animal remains both within and without the city walls,
and then stretch themselves for repose in the centre of
the streets, and many Interesting families of tawny-

40 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
coloured puppies are to be seen basking in the sun, or
snugly huddled together in warm corners. Dogs con
sume in an incredibly short space of time the carcases
of such dead animals as have either died outside the
city, or have been dragged thither from within. These
dogs are always healthy, for they are allowed to follow
their instincts, roam about at will, and to eat raw flesh,
which is, I believe, necessary to perfect health in the
dog. I have been informed that hydrophobia is not
known. Let us reflect upon our modern sanitary law and
edicts for dog-slaughtering.
The climate of Aleppo Is fine, dry, and healthy ; the
air pure, strong, and bracing, but sometimes too
piercing for those who are not strong. The tempera
ture is, high and the sun hot from the end of May until
the end of September ; the autumns very enjoyable ;
the winters quite cold enough, with frosts at night. In
January there are heavy rains and frequent floods, which
sometimes continue until late in the spring. The winds,
which not unfrequently in the early part of the year
sweep across this high tableland with great fierceness,
are sometimes very keen.
The Aleppo Button is a very curious form of disease
which is almost endemic ; it begins by a red pimple,
which increases in size with inflammation, develops
into an ulcer, lasts twelve months, and leaves a pitted
,scar, varying in size from that of afourpenny piece to a
^shilling. I believe all born in Aleppo, without any
exception, haVe it, and invariably on the face or head.

Halab, or Aleppo. 41
It is generally supposed that strangers who reside a
certain time in the city — three months, I believe— are
attacked by it, but it comes frequently on their limbs,
instead of on their faces. The dogs have it, and usually
on the tip of the nose. It is known at Baghdad, where
the climate is essentially different, and at some other
places — at least, so I have been informed. Some attri
bute the " button " to the absence of certain properties
in the only salt with which Aleppo is supplied from the
Lake of Jebbul, « the Valley of Salt:' '
There are two events of comparatively recent date
in connection with Aleppo worthy of remembrance.
Some Badaween who had come to Aleppo reported
they had seen wonderful and magnificent ruins in the
desert at Tadmor, distant some six days' journey ; and
from their persistent statement, towards the close of the
seventeenth century some English merchants residing
at Aleppo were eventually induced to undertake the
journey to ascertain the truth of the report, when they
found it to be even as the Badaween had stated. Thus
was the ancient Tadmor in the wilderness brought to
remembrance, and the ruins of the more modern Palmyra
were made known to the civilized world. The report
>made by these gentlemen of that which they had seen
in the desert at Tadmor, gained but little credence in
Europe, so like did it seem to a tale from fairyland,
until it was more than confirmed in 175 1 by the results
of the expedition under Messrs. Woods and Dawkins
and M. Bouverie.
The Arabian horse known as Darley's Arabian was

42 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
sent to England from Aleppo, not later than quite 'the1
beginning of the eighteenth century. He was ob
tained by Mr. Darley, a merchant of Aleppo, and either
brought home by him, or sent home to his brothers in
Yorkshire. This was an event of considerable Importance. This
undoubted Arabian was the sire of Flying Childers and
his brother Bartlet's Childers, and his blood prevails
not only in every English racer, but to some extent in
every horse of English descent with any pretension to
breeding ; and by him was the supremacy of the Arabian
horse tardily but finally acknowledged.
The history of this horse has been handed down by
tradition at the English Consulate at Aleppo. I was told
that an account of him was among the archives of the.
Consulate, which, however, I never saw ; but if access
could be had to these, a search for so interesting a
document might be rewarded by a find. It says that
he was a desert-born Arabian, and obtained from
some Anazah Badaween who happened to be at or
near Tadmor ; but it by no means follows that the
horse necessarily was bred at or near Tadmor, which
is frequently stated by writers. He was, as has been
stated in a former work, of the strain of blood called
Ras-al-FadawI.* It Is very probable that the visit of the English mer
chants to the ruins at Tadmor and the opportunity which
enabled Mr. Darley to obtain this horse were closely
connected, and that the second event resulted from the
* See "Newmarket and Arabia."

Halab, or Aleppo. 43
first. I expect the Badaween who reported the ruins
were of the Anazah, for it would be about that time that
certain tribes of the Anazah race first visited that part
of the desert ; as strangers, they would naturally be
astonished at such vast ruins, and would hardly fail to
speak of them on a first visit to Aleppo. Whereas the
Badaween who occupied the neighbouring desert would
not allude to what had been known to their tribes for
many generations.
It was at Aleppo that Dr. Edward Pocock, the great
Orientalist, passed six years of his life as chaplain to the
English community of merchants. Here he perfected
himself in Arabic, until, as it has been said by an Arab,
he spoke it with the facility and purity of an Arab.
Here he collected a great number of most valuable
parchments and manuscripts, and compiled from these
and the works of the best Arabian authors a volume
called " Specimen Historiae Arabum," without doubt the
most complete work we possess regarding the wonderful
history of this most remarkable people.
At Aleppo, also, Mr. Lewis Burckhardt studied
Arabic for three years before he commenced his travels
in Arabia. The following little incident will give some idea of
Badaween life. A party of Anazah had come In to
escort us and to be our safeguard through the desert to
their tribe, and although our guests at that time, they
were lodged by an Arab Agha, or gentleman, a resident
in Aleppo. One evening, after the great heat of the

44 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
day, we were seated in the open court of the house, by
the river Khalus, about half a mile from the city, waiting
the announcement of dinner, with our Effendi and a
German doctor who was a perfect Arabic scholar, and
just before our Badaween guests took their departure for
the night, when the doctor — who had been looking hard
at one of the Anazah who sat quietly opposite, but with
his eyes fixed upon those of the doctor — after rubbing
his eyes, suddenly exclaimed, " That man is one of the
party which attacked and robbed me some years ago,
between Tadmor and Damascus." " It cannot be," said-
our Effendi ; " the people who attacked you were of
another tribe, and were far away at that time." " I am
sure he was there," said the doctor, who in plain lan
guage put the question to the Badaween Shaykh whether
he was not one of them. The Anazah, whose name I
will not mention, replied at once, without any equivoca
tion or betrayal of any emotion beyond a very slight
smile, " Yes, I was there." Our Effendi was astonished.
The doctor was pleased ; he had not been mistaken, and
that was the end of the matter.
The doctor's adventure with the Badaween was as
follows. The doctor, who was an historian and anti
quary, was examining with his companion some in
teresting remains, when they became suddenly aware of a
rapid approach. Aroused and starting to their feet, they.
saw a party of a few mounted Badaween, with their long
lances high above their heads, coming on like a whirl
wind : one in advance continued his course ; the others,
or most of them, flew upon the spoil. The doctor and

Halab, or Aleppo. ¦ 45
his friend seized their rifles, and, regardless of their own
safety, took up positions opposite to each other, to fire
on the horse from both sides. The doctor said, " I did
not want to kill the mare — she was a magnificent creature
— but only to wound her and to bring her rider to the
ground." But, unfortunately, either his friend was less
considerate, or by accident his shot brought the mare to
the ground, from which she never rose again. The
fierce son of the desert, on rising to his feet, lifted his--
mare's head in his arms, while his tears fell fast, forget
ting all about the doctor and his friend. " He wept,"'
says the doctor, " like a child."
From Aleppo roads or tracks radiate by the most
direct routes across the open country to the outlying
villages, on the verge of the desert ; and these are not
connected by cross roads, although tracks may be made
as occasion requires. But the principal roads are — the
post-road to . Irak or Turkish Arabia, beyond the
Euphrates, known generally as the Baghdad Road,
which goes a long way round up to Diarbekr In the north,
and as • far east as Mosul (near the ancient Nineveh) ;
the Adanah road into Asia Minor or Anatolia ; the
Damascus road through Hums ; the road to Iskande
roon ; and the Antioch road, which diverges in a southerly
direction from the road to Iskanderoon at Termaneen
across the plain of Halkar, where, as has been related,
Zenobia Is said to have been defeated by the Roman
troops, passes through a gorge in the mountains, over
frightful rocks, in places where horsemen could only

46 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
move singly and with difficulty in a narrow deep channel
blocked up by enormous boulders, and emerges on to
the plain of Antioch.
The high land in the neighbourhood of Aleppo is
very fertile, as is the soil generally throughout Syria,
but the face of the country is covered with stones. Some
are square with sharp edges, others round, from the size
of an eighteen-pounder shot downwards to grape or
canister, besides others of greater magnitude. These
are scattered about so thickly, and often on the top of
large masses or slabs of rock imbedded in and on a level
with the surrounding soil, it seems almost impossible for
your horse to avoid them, yet over this rocky ground
and loose stones do horses gallop, oxen plough, caravans
travel. The heights and hills in the neighbourhood of
Aleppo, as well as the more detached summits or peaks
of the undulating ground, of which small peaks there
are many, and which rise like small mountains from their
chain of hills, are generally of solid rock, often with
chalk underneath, and on these you may continually see
eagles sunning themselves, which are seldom disturbed
at your approach, and you may sometimes ride for hours
without meeting any one.
Ploughing is performed, as it has been from time Im
memorial in the East, with a curved instrument of wood,
which, I have no doubt, is identical, or almost so, with
the original plough. Two oxen are sometimes used, also
a horse and an ox, or an ox and a mule. I do not

Halab, or Aleppo. 47
remember to have seen two horses yoked to one plough ;
I have seen two yokes in one plat, and a horse and an
ox in each, and two mules are commonly yoked. The
ploughman does not use reins, nor are his animals led or
guided by any one else, but he speaks to, abjures, or
curses his four-footed servants by turns, as he may think
the occasion requires. We have heard a man, with much
gesticulation, express the fervent wish to a white mule,
" that his father's grave might be defiled." " May your
Hareem be childless," Is another favourite malediction.
The seed is sown broadcast, and the stony ground
spoken of by our Lord in His parable is well exempli
fied in this country by the huge blocks and slabs of
rock, partly buried, and sometimes just visible only, or
on a level with the surrounding ground. That over
which loose stones are thickly scattered, where appa
rently there is as much stone as earth, is very good
ground, and very productive ; the stones are considered
very beneficial, as affording shelter to the tender blade
from the fierce sun when it first appears above the
surface of the earth.
It struck us as very strange to see animals unequally
yoked together — -a horse and an ox, or an ox and a mule
— although in these instances not as exactly forbidden
by the command, " Thou shalt not plough with an ox
and an ass together," until we remembered that In Eng
land our fields are sometimes sown with mingled seed, in
spite of a similar prohibition, and the more marked from
the reason given why it should not be done, " Lest the

48 Gleanings .from the Desert of Arabia.
fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of
thy vineyard, be defiled." *
Although the Khalus, which runs by Aleppo, and is
lost in the desert at the distance of some thirty-five
or forty miles, is not to be compared to the waters
of Damascus, I am inclined to think Aleppo is the
finest city in the Semitic peninsula. We first saw it
• after a ride of a day and a night, looking bright and
dazzling in the early morning sun, surrounded by its
diadem of fresh green foliage ; our last look was when,
on our homeward journey, we turned our horses on an
eminence to take a farewell glance as the sun was
sinking, and we were obliged to confess we had seldom
seen a fairer scene, and in respect to situation and
aspect it would be difficult to find a grander city than
old Halab. * Deut. xxii. 9.

CHAPTER IV.
GLIMPSES OF ALEPPINE LIFE.
A DAY or two after our arrival at Aleppo we were
shown over part of the city, and visited the Syriac
and Greek churches in Jedaide — fine lofty buildings,
rather plentifully adorned with paintings. We were
also taken to call at the house of a Christian Syrian
gentleman, whose family consisted of five sons and two
daughters. One of the former, a young gentleman about
five years of age, smoked his cigarette. The two young
ladies are tall, bright, cheerful, handsome girls, dressed,
as the expression is, d lAfranji, i.e. like Europeans — a
great mistake, by the way. We were told one is like an
English and the other like a French girl. Their father
was evidently very proud of them, and with good
reason. After a few minutes these both left the room.
One soon reappeared, bringing in a glass dish with very
small silver forks on a salver. The dish contained some
dark-looking balls about the size of walnuts ; politeness
demands that we should each take one, although it is
not always wise to partake of a dish of the ingredients
of which you 'are ignorant. These balls were very dry,

50 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
and seemed to be a compound of spices : they were a
great trouble to us. To our great relief the second
young lady appeared with coffee ; we bolted the balls,
and received the refreshing beverage with much satisfac
tion. They all seemed pleased with our visit, and we
experienced civility and "politeness wherever we went in
Aleppo. We were well horsed when at Aleppo, for, besides
two good horses of our own, we had free use of more
than we could at times ride; but we scoured the country
for miles round. Our favourite ride was across the
country towards the desert to the east, good galloping
ground being there, and the air from the desert
came so sweet and refreshing to us. On one occasion,
only a few days after our arrival, towards evening, we
missed our way. We had passed beyond some of the
gardens which surround Aleppo, and crossed the river,
thinking to be able, by following the line of gardens, to
recross at some point and return by a different route.
The sun had set, and it would soon be dark, and the
garden seemed to be without an end. On one side of
us was the interminable garden, with the river running
between it and our road at the depth of some twenty or
thirty feet ; and on our left were barren, rocky hills. It
goes against one to have to turn back, and in the present
instance we should have had to repass, a very nasty bit
of road, of which I at least had had enough ; for when
passing along a narrow ledge of rock, with a precipice
on our right hand, at the bottom of which ran the river,

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 51
and on our left an upright wall of rock, the colt I was
riding turned suddenly to the right, which brought us
with our faces looking over the precipice. I had ascer
tained that the colt always resisted turning to the left :
had I insisted, under existing circumstances, in all pro
bability we should have both gone over the edge and
fallen down the precipice into the rocky bed of the
river ; but the colt turned to the right-about, with his
legs drawn under him like a goat, which brought us
with our backs to the precipice and our faces to the rock.
Without a moment's hesitation or warning, he sprang
up, catching the ledge of the rock above us with his
forefeet. For an Instant we were hanging against the
face of the rock ; the next, with a struggle, we were on
the top. The strength and agility to have accomplished
such a feat must be sufficiently apparent, and need no
further comment. We were still in some difficulty :
above us on the left were still higher rocks; before, a
descent of large boulders, and the way we had come up.
Selecting the middle course, by scrambling over the
boulders, we regained the former road at some distance
further on. Still the garden was not rounded ; the
last point, as we had thought more than once or twice,
when gained revealed another, and we only knew we
were going further from home. We gallop when we can,
trot and scramble when rocks prevent galloping. We
see at last an entrance into the gardens ; we cross the
river, enter them, and ride along a causeway of stone
shut in with trees on both sides. We begin to doubt
whether we are much better off. We catch a glimpse of

52 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
light before us, which increases in width : it Is from the
twilight sky ; we are in the open again, and have cut off
the last angle of the gardens. We turn sharply to the
right and see the evening star in our front : It will soon
be down, and it is almost dark ; we might still lose our
way, for we are strangers. We set our horses going a
bit ; these drop their heads to the hand, and stretch
themselves out like true Arabs. At last we see a faint
reddish light. Can it be a star setting in the mist ? No,
it is the light from the minaret, and then the old citadel
is seen looming up from the gloom. We get back in
the dark, but in time for dinner.
We had been invited, with the Consul and his family,
to an Armenian wedding, which was fixed for the very
evening of the day on which the incident just recounted
had occurred. After dinner, about 8 o'clock, we started
for the marriage, which was to be celebrated at the house
of the bridegroom's father (the bride, I believe, was an
orphan). We proceed thus : two Kavasses (attendants on
the Consulate, men who generally have been soldiers),
armed, in front — one of these was dressed in blue ; the
other, a richer man, sparkled in silver ; both were girded
with swords — then followed domestic servants, two of
whom (men) carried lamps, not merely lanterns, but
larger than street lamps ; next went the lady with the
little boy, who could not be left at home ; our host, with
ourselves, bringing up the rear. We proceed with rather
solemn steps, the Kavasses out of step ; pass through
the burying-grounds, which appear like plantations
of tombstones, up to the Jedaide Gate, at which we

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 53
knock, for the gates are closed at night ; it is opened,
after some delay, by a sleepy porter. The shops, for the
most part, have been closed for some time, but a few
people work late — a shoemaker we especially notice.
The dogs lie asleep in the middle of the streets, and are
not easily disturbed, or are curled up on heaps of rubbish
by the walls. It seems a long way to the house of
Butros ; at last we turn into a street where women are
seen standing at the open door. The sound of music is
heard. Butros and numerous attendants come out to
us, among them a tall stalwart man, girded with a sword
and staff in hand ; he is dressed in a petticoat garment of
red and white stripes, he is red himself, his face is red,
his brawny powerful arms are red, his general appearance
is inflammatory : we heard afterwards he is the Armenian
prize-fighter and is good against ten ordinary men.
We enter through a crooked passage into a spacious
court ; water or some other fluid is showered over us.
There is a large square room to the right, full of the
women kind, but some few lords of creation are there
too. The rooms are crowded ; we miss our friend, but
follow the lady and modestly stand aloof when she
enters the ladies' apartments. Presently our host Butros
appears and conducts us to a room open to the court on
one side, where we find our friend already installed on
the Divan, with two grave-looking Turks and some five
Armenian Khawajahs ; these all rise to salute us as we
enter; Narghillies and cigarettes are brought in. The
clergy now arrive and are ushered into our Divan, which
appeared to be full already ; we all rise, and some of the

54 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
priests shake hands with us, and place is found somehow
for them. In England a clergyman is often assisted by
one other in the trying duty of performing the marriage
service, but here are seven ecclesiastics ! They are all in
black, and wear high caps or hats ; they are all superior-
looking men, and one is certainly handsome, another looks
like a Jew, and another has the longest thumb I have
perhaps ever seen : the first joint or articulation is nearly
where the second is to be found in most people's hands.
What a study that hand would be ! what secrets might it
not reveal ! They all take cigarettes, and the Divan is
hazy with smoke. After some little time we are conducted
into another room on the opposite side of the house to
where the women kind are assembled, looking directly
across the court into it. A table is brought in, a bundle
wrapped in a coloured cloth, carried on a tray, is placed
upon the table, a lighted candle is also put at each corner,
incense is burnt. While in the other Divan the bride
groom entered and kissed our hands. Now we are
joined by the seven priests, and after a time they all
begin to sing. The approach of the bride is now an
nounced by peculiar sounds of wailing outside the house.
It is, as I am told, the Zagaleet, the same tune that was
performed at marriage festivals in the days of Isaac and
Rebecca. It takes a long time to get her into the house,
and when she does make an entrance she goes upstairs —
we are aware of the fact, although we do not see the
bride — a number of boys join the priests in singing, and
when the bride has got upstairs the priests sit down.
The bridegroom enters, supported by two dingy-looking

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 55
friends or best men : the former kisses the hand of the
senior priest, who appears to bless him ; he salutes the
others with his hand. Now the mysterious-looking
bundle is opened by one of the ecclesiastics ; the dresses
of the bridegroom are disclosed. The dingy friends next
proceed to undress the bridegroom : he is stripped of his
upper garments, and a clean white shirt is put on, but it
is too small in the neck, and they try in vain to fasten it
then a beautiful petticoat of blue, white, and chocolate
coloured stripes is put on, followed by a short blue jacket ;
and lastly a dark-coloured long coat, a new bright-red
Fez, and a clean pocket-handkerchief of a full size are
given to the bridegroom, who looks tired and jaded, but
this may be part of the performance. His friends support
him by an arm on each side, and he is now ready for the
ceremony. The bride has appeared in the chamber of women ;
we can see a little creature with a long white veil be
spangled with gold ; a female attendant stands on her
right and a little behind, holding her right arm. The
priests proceed to this chamber and arrange themselves
three on a side ; the aged priest stands on the left of the
bride, holding aloft a silver crucifix ; they all uncover
their heads. We had followed the priests, and room is at
once made for us. The bridegroom is led up an avenue
formed by friends and spectators ; he bows his head
until it touches the veiled forehead of the bride, and thus
they stand. Butros, father of the bridegroom, holds a
large gold or gilt crucifix over their heads ; it rests
upon the heads of bride and bridegroom ; I notice that

56 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Butros holds the lower limb of the cross with a handker
chief. The priests sing and recite ; the aged priest
appears to pronounce a benediction from time to time :
it is a very long ceremony, and we wonder at the strength
and endurance of the bride, for we are ready to drop
from fatigue and the heat of the room. There is a
pause ; the bride is short of stature, and a cushion is
brought for her to stand upon, as stooping so low is too
much for the bridegroom, who is of fair height.
We retire to our former divan, thankful to get into
a cooler atmosphere and have the opportunity of looking
around us, all the company being in the one room where
the marriage ceremony is being performed. Over the
centre of the court an awning has been spread and a
lantern suspended from the middle ; the large basin of
the fountain is covered with a Persian carpet, and is
occupied by a band of Arab musicians with stringed
instruments, some of which are played upon by sticks ;
there are also cymbals, a flageolet, two little kettledrums,
one about six and the other four inches in diameter,
and some tambourines. There is another band called
European ; it has an enormous drum and brass instru
ments. These bands had already played alternately for
' hours. At last the marriage ceremony is over ; the rooms
begin to fill again, the bride retires to change her dress.
The bridegroom enters the court supported by his two
dingy friends (purposely dingy, I presume, for the sake
of contrast) ; he has not yet seen his bride unveiled.
The priests return to the Divan, wipe the perspiration

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 57
from their brows, and regale themselves with cigarettes.
Coffee, refreshments, and sweets of various kinds are
handed round, but we have no appetite and can only
drink the coffee. Chairs are placed before us loaded
with cakes and sweets by way of encouragement. The
European band strikes up and plays vigorously ; the big
drum performs a very important part. This is succeeded
by the Arab band, which is less noisy, and the musicians
sing as well as play. Boys begin to dance, accompanied
by the loud clapping of many pairs of hands in time to
the music.
The bride is a long time absent, but her reappear
ance is at last announced by the same peculiar wailing —
the Zagaleet — we had heard when she first came to
the house, and she takes up the position in the same
room she formerly occupied. Now the bridegroom
has to play his part : he is assisted towards the chamber
by his two dingy friends ; the progress is very slow
and very tedious. The Arab band plays its liveliest
strains ; friends and attendants dance before him and
•sing and clap their hands to encourage him on his way.
It is of little avail ; he looks sad and dejected, and turns
his head from side to side to see if there be any way
•of escape, and he appears to need all the support his
best men can give him to keep him on his legs. He
might have been a Mexican victim for sacrifice, who,
after a year of unchecked gratification, was on his
way to the sacrificial mountain, rather than a gallant
bridegroom. His friends renew their encouragement ; at
last, with a kind of a run, he Is brought up to his bride.

58 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
At this juncture he seems to be himself again : he
audaciously attempts to raise the veil of his bride with
his sword, but which is warded off by one of her
attendants, and the bride's charms remain undiscovered.
He renews his attempts and is again unsuccessful, but
the sword becomes entangled ; another attendant disen
gages the veil. Fired by expectation, the bridegroom
makes another attempt, and this time is successful, for
by a quick movement of his sword the veil is lifted up.
The bride sinks upon the ground, hiding her face with
her hands, and conceals her beauty with the hem of her
attendant's garment ; but she is raised up, the veil
is readjusted, this tfme leaving her face uncovered and
hanging down her back, and bride and bridegroom are
seated side by side.
We are brought up for introduction. Both rise, and
we bow and express our best wishes for their happiness
and welfare ; the bride kisses our hands, as does the
bridegroom also.
Now we may depart, although we are pressed to stay,
but it is past midnight. We make a hurried circuit of
the house, we bow to such Turks and Armenians to
whom we had been specially introduced, one of the priests
comes forward to shake us by the hand. Butros and
some friends accompany us not only to the door but
to the corner of the street ; we beg him to return, and
take our leave of him, but certain of. his guests and
attendants insist upon going with us, among these the
gladiator. As we wend our way through the narrow
streets we see the shoemaker still at work. At the city

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 59
gate we express the desire that those who had come
with us so far should return, but they insist upon going
on, and leave us only at our house in the Azizieh. Upon
taking leave the red Armenian athlete bows to the
very ground before England's Representative.
Besides feasts and fasts, there are many holidays :
every saint's day in the large calendar of the Syriac,,
Greek, and Latin churches is a Christian holiday ; then
there are the Christian Sunday, the Hebrew Sabbath,
and the Mussulman day of religious observance on
Fridays, and as business can be only partially conducted
on these days, one element of the three communities
being shut out on each day, and if the weather be fine,
it often results In a holiday.
I give the following extract from my diary during the
first week of Lent, which I spent at Aleppo : — Sunday,
as usual, a holiday. Monday was a holiday, and the
Christian population was abroad, dressed in its best. I
inquired the cause. It had gone forth " to meet the
priest." Formerly there was no Christian instructor at
Aleppo, and a monk or priest was despatched from the
convent on Jabal Simaan to that city once every year,
to teach and to preach, to the people ; he arrived on
the Monday before Ash- Wednesday, and the people went
out to meet him and to bring him in. Although a
thousand years have passed since the last priest came,
the custom is still kept up ; the people "go out to meet
the priest " every year. The Tuesday, a fine day, the
populace was abroad again ; it is a general holiday.

60 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Ash Wednesday, being a fast, was kept as a holiday.
Thursday, a cold gloomy day, hardly a person to be
seen outside the city walls. Friday, the Mussulman's
day of religious observance, a holiday. Saturday, an
other holiday. Sunday again ; but, alas ! it is a cold,
rainy day, and only a few are abroad.
On these holidays, when the weather is fine, horse
men go out to play Jireed. This game, in which courage,
dexterity, and horsemanship are exhibited, is perhaps
not what it was formerly : it is played now generally by
a different class of men and horses, and riding-sticks are
more often used than the Jireed. Serious accidents have
occurred ; men have even been mortally wounded — with
so much force can some hurl this weapon of pastime— in
consequence of which the Government has discouraged
the game, The Jireed properly is a rod or staff, four
feet long, made from the branches of palms or of oak,
and about five pounds in weight. The ground where
Jireed is usually played at Aleppo might be made a very
good one ; it is a large square, with the corners rounded,
outside Jedaide and close to Azizieh, and on three sides
is surrounded with high banks, which might afford room
for thousands of spectators, but one part of the area is
spoilt by pits and holes, which have been digged to
extract gravel and stone. When the game is properly
played, there are sides ; a horseman goes forward from
one party, and either menaces the opposite force, or
hurls his Jireed. If he hurls his Jireed, he turns his
horse and gallops off at full speed. He is chased by
one or more, and, if opportunity offers, Jireeds are

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 6r
hurled at him ; but they have often to turn and fly
themselves from horsemen who ride out to cover the
retreat of the first assailant from their own party : and
the mtile'e becomes general, and every one gallops as he
is moved, and the game goes on until most of the players,
or all, are fairly tired out.
Large parties of youths may also be seen practising
the game in ploughed fields by the roadside, within a
mile of the town. There can be no doubt that it is the
favourite amusement.
The Christian women walk, or rather crawl about, for,
no matter how cold the weather may be, they never get
beyond a saunter ; some ride on horses or mules or
donkeys, but always astride. Large white donkeys, with
very large heads and very long ears, are much used by
the Khawajahs of Aleppo. Khawajah is really "gentle
man," but it is used to express any respectable man.
These generally have crimson saddles or pads, the cloth
being continued to the setting on of the tail of the
animal. The women all wear white or black sheets,
brought over their heads and covering their dresses ;
these latter are of very brilliant colours, but blue of
various shades would appear to be the favourite in
Northern Syria. White sheets are more usually worn
than black, but the latter are considered more fashionable
and distinguished ; there are also some of a dark blue
colour. The face is exposed, and the sheet is held by
one hand under the chin, but if they should meet any one,
the mouth is very generally concealed by the sheet being
brought across it with the other hand. The women are

62 Gleanings fromHhe Desert of Arabia.
good-looking, and very many have a bright complexion ;
their eyebrows and hair are generally dark, but I have
seen light-coloured eyes and brown hair, and sometimes
auburn and red. Their eyes seem to improve with age,
gaining transparency and expression, which in youth
they rather lack : but this kind of eye is to be seen
principally among those of Greek extraction ; the Syrians
proper have a bright and sparkling eye. Many of these
women are tall, comely, and of a commanding presence,
but those who are shorter appear rather dumpy and
roundabout wrapped in their sheets ; but, nevertheless, it
is a decent, modest-looking garment.
The men are of a good medium height and well
formed, and decidedly tall men are not uncommon ;
those who wear loose Arab trousers, with a jacket, look
very well, as it is a becoming dress, but a petticoat of
silk or coloured cotton, generally of two colours, in
stripes, and which is but too often worn over trousers
and under the jacket, has a very bad and unmanly ap
pearance. These long petticoats are not made with
skirts, like a frock-coat, but have little slits a short way
up only on each side, which allow very little freedom,
and the garment .gives a stiff awkward appearance to the
wearer, especially when he is in motion, and seems to
impede and cramp his movements. Cloaks of white, or
of white ground with a small flower pattern, are worn by
Muslim gentlemen, and in the winter overcoats or cloaks
trimmed with fur are worn by Christians and Muslims.
A sash is worn round the waist. Some men, and these
are the dandies, wear a handsome embroidered waist-

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 63
coat, and a still handsomer jacket, which is left open,
and the sleeves hang down unused. The jackets are
made of every shade of blue cloth, embroidered with
gold or silver lace or braid. A Tarboosh or Fez is the
general head-dress, with a black tassel, which appears to
be more fashionable than the blue. The Fez is conical
in shape, with a small portion of the cone cut off. Many
wind a coloured handkerchief round the Tarboosh, which
makes a turban, if necessary, and at all times adds
greatly to the appearance. On holidays these are often
of a material interwoven or adorned with gold. The
costume is very generally spoilt by the adoption of the
cheap, ready-made French spring-side boots, with small
high heels set very forward, and the disuse of the
scarlet slipper or the Arab boot of red or yellow goat
skin with a bright blue tassel. Many of the women
also wear these detestable spring-side boots ; but some
have Oxford shoes, and these look much neater.
The Christian Khawajah very generally affects Euro
pean costume, more French than English in style and
make, and presents a very unfavourable appearance in
comparison with those who retain their Eastern cos
tume. He has a surtout, or short walking or lounging
coat, as I believe it is called, according to the age of
the wearer, trousers ill cut and spreading over the foot,
and a Fez. He does not wear a handkerchief round his
Fez. He is shod with patent leather spring-side boots,
generally very thin, and wears clogs in wet weather, which
he leaves outside the door upon entering a room. I
conclude patent leather is so generally used as boot-
cleaning is an art but little practised in Aleppo.

64 Gleanings from the Deserl of Arabia.
Many fortunes have been made in Aleppo, and there
are many rich people, but still enterprise does not seem
to be an especial attribute of the Aleppines : even those
who are engaged In mercantile affairs appear to be more
interested in preventing their neighbours' business than
in prosecuting their own.
If one man has a matter of business which demands
a call upon a European representative, half a dozen will
immediately follow, not because they have any business,
but to try to find out what the first man wanted.
The ordinary comforts of life and many things of
domestic use the Aleppines would rather want than take
any trouble to acquire. They will walk through sloughs
and roads ankle-deep in water rather than put down
stones, though these are lying in abundance by the way
side, and only require to be spread ; the mounds of dibris
from the earthquake of 1872 would mend the roads for a
long time. Butter is only to be had in the spring, and
is procured from neighbouring villages. I asked an in
telligent Syrian if he liked butter. " Yes, very much in
spring!' "And would you not like to have it all the year
round ? " " Yes." " Then why don't you take the means
of acquiring it ? " " It is impossible ; it is not the custom"
We were asked to attend a theatrical performance
by the scholars of the Jewish school or college at Aleppo ;
it was in French, and " La Malade imaginaire " was well
rendered. During the absence from home of an Arab gentleman
who had accompanied us on our journey into the desert,
one of his slaves, a Nubian lad, or perhaps a negro lad

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 65
from Nubia, had run away. Our friend mounted his
mare to go in pursuit ; he was greatly incensed, and he
had to go unarmed, for his wife, he told us afterwards,
had purposely hidden his sword and pistols. The lady's
conduct speaks for itself. The slave was caught at
Antioch, chastised, and mounted behind his master.
The weather was bad : it was cold, and with incessant
heavy rains ; there were swollen fords to be crossed, and
our friend caught a shocking cold. Whenever he was
painfully reminded on the road, by the inconvenience
and trouble he was suffering, of the bad conduct of his
slave, he administered a back-hander upon the Nubian
with his stick. At night the slave was shackled to the
mare. " Now," said our friend, " I want to sell my slave,
for I will not be troubled with him any longer ; " but he
had only received an offer of sixteen pounds, whereas he
had given twenty-one for him.
The kind heart of our hostess was moved with pity ;
she offered to buy the slave, to make him free, and to
employ him as a gardener, his usual occupation, with
wages. This was on Sunday — a deed worthy of the
day. The slave was brought up. Although he had had
a taste of the rod of correction, and had been shackled
to a horse, I may remark that I do not suppose he had
been starved ; he looked in better case than his master,
at all events. The kind intention of the lady was ex
plained to him. He received the proposal very coldly ;
he did not approve of the arrangement — in fact, he
wanted to remain with his master. He was allowed
twenty-four hours for reflection, and was to come up
F

66 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to give his decision on the following day. He did not
appear. We subsequently heard this was why the Nubian
lad did not return and accept his freedom. The slave
fell at his master's feet, and implored him not to
part with him. He rushed to the door of the Hareem,
and intreated the lady to intercede with her husband
on his behalf, and finally made such interest with his
master's wife's uncle, that he induced that kind old
gentleman to plead his cause. The master relented,
once more inflicted a chastisement, and consented to
let his slave remain on his promise of being a good boy
in future. Black slaves, I believe, are treated with much kind
ness by both Christians and Mussulmans. They are
often great tyrants in their master's families as they
grow old ; the children of the house, so we were in
formed, being sometimes expelled at the instance of a
slave. There are few men of more importance, none of so
much consequence, as the negro slave in a great man's
establishment, and to see a bulky black dressed in black
European clothes among his master's family, friends and
retainers, all in Oriental costume, appears as incongruous
as his assumptive airs are ridiculous.
The Pasha or Governor at Aleppo, when we first
visited that city, was a civilian, a fine elderly man, full
of vigour and kind in his manner. His successor, who
was a soldier in the prime of life and had served in the
Crimean War, was an educated and enlightened man.

Glimpses of Aleppine Life. 67
Although there were some who took exception at his
measures and objected to the reforms which he made,
I believe, eventually, the unanimous voice of Aleppo
pronounced him to be an upright judge.
He set himself to work manfully to rule in justice
and to put down abuses ; he allotted his daily time, gave
audience at separate hours to different orders of the
community : every one, from the highest to the lowest
in the streets, could have access to him and free speech
in his presence. He was strict in his religious obser
vance, impartial in his administration and decisions,
and the husband of one wife. He was friendly and
affable in his manner. He was much pleased at
receiving from the Christian schools two samplers, such
as may be often seen in English cottages ; they were
hung up on the walls of his Divan. He did not fail to
tell you they were the children of Christians who had
given them to him, and as he did so his eye beamed
with kindness and pleasure.
His term of rule was but too short; well would it
have been, I believe, for Aleppo had it been longer. He
was recalled to another government in Europe.

CHAPTER V.
ANTIOCH.
CIRCUMSTANCES compelled me to visit other parts of
Syria, and on a wet raw day, towards the end of March,
I started for Antioch. My son and a Mussulman, a
citizen of Antioch, but of East Indian ancestry, ac
companied me a few miles on the way, which as far as
Termaneen, on the plain of Halkar, is the same by
which we had gone from Iskanderoon to Aleppo, and on
the rocky eminence which overlooks Aleppo we parted,
my boy to return to Aleppo, in the middle of a tre
mendous storm of hail, driven with relentless fury by
a strong westerly gale which blew right in our teeth
during our eight hours' ride over rocks and stones to
Termaneen, until the horses' eyes were bloodshot, and
the men looked like famished wolves. After a hasty
supper and a few hours' rest, we started about half-past
three the next morning, riding across the plain of Halkar
in a southerly direction, the Iskanderoon road running
to the west, passed over and descended the rocky hills
which form a girdle round the plain of Halkar, threading

Antioch. 69
our way round the large blocks of rock and winding
through deep gorges, the rugged and almost perpen
dicular sides of the mountain looking dark and gloomy.
On the summits of these are the remains of castles and,
I think, towers : one which appeared to have been a large
fortified position was seen a long way off, and com
manded every gorge or opening in the mountains. On
the road we were riding, at one place and for some
distance, the track along which we went was nothing
but the dry rocky bed of a mountain torrent, not more
than, I should say, six feet wide, shut in by high walls of
red stone, the channel or bed being blocked up with
enormous boulders and rocks. I understood there was
no other road, and by this route must the troops of
Aurelian have passed before meeting those of Zenobia
on the plain of Halkar above. About halfway through
this peculiarly narrow pass, on a large slab of perpen
dicular rock, there is an old inscription to be seen, and
just beyond, as the pass widens and you gain the right
bank of the gorge or gullet, you are somewhat startled
by the appearance of -a magnificent ruin on a small
plateau at this point, between the mountains and the
•water-course, one part of which had certainly been a
Christian church, and a very beautiful one ; the buildings
were of fine reddish stone beautifully squared into
blocks of about four feet by two, and apparently fitted
without cement. In front *was an encampment of
Turkoman shepherds ; about half a mile further on, and
principally on the other side of the water-course, are the
remains of what appears to have been a town of some

70 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
considerable size. The gorge is wider here, and you
catch sight of the plain of Antioch.
We stopped for a few minutes for breakfast by the
side of a river, the water of which was perfectly warm,
and which retained its heat for a considerable time,
after even a small quantity has been dipped out from
the river. It is most unpleasant to drink.
It came on to rain, and we decided to ride on and to
leave the baggage animals to follow, so as to enable us
to reach Antioch before nightfall. Owing to incessant
heavy rains the plain of Antioch was impassable, and a
great part under water ; so, turning to the left shortly
before the gorge though which we had been riding
opened upon the plain, we rode over the spurs of the
hills skirting its edge. There are several small rivers
or streams running down from the hills, which were
difficult to cross from the great overflow of water.
Dotted about this great plain are large mounds, which
were now for the most part islands, to which cattle escape
from the water. The road or track became very bad,
nearly knee-deep in mire, after passing Hiram, a village
pleasantly situate by the side of a river, at the point
where it runs out of a narrow pass in the mountain and
enters into the plain. At last we were brought up by a
wide expanse of water, the overflow of a river of originally
some width, and now a rapid current which ran round
the greater part of a conical mound some fifty or sixty
feet high. This looked like the last piece of land, a
waste of water being beyond. By reconnoitring we
discovered at some distance a few huts on a small piece

Antioch. 7 1
of ground but very slightly elevated above the water ;
after shouting for a long while, a man made his
appearance, and pointed out to us a fordable place,
marked by sticks and bushes, doubtless to secure a way
of escape should their position become altogether un
tenable. There appeared to be some fifty or sixty
people in these huts, and one was induced, for some
considerable reward, to conduct us over the waste of
waters, and thus to not only guide our way, but to
avert the danger of falling into the deep channels of
the various water-courses, or rivers, to where the course
of the Orontes ran, which was not far distant. At one
place only, as far as I could see, was any vestige of
banks to be seen, and here was a ferry-boat. My colt
jumped nimbly over the high sides into the clumsy
barge, but the old horse which my attendant rode
made a mistake and fell backwards into the river out
of his depth, and got underneath the boat, but he
was got in at last. The Orontes, after running north
through Syria, enters at this point into the plain
of Antioch, and, after a short course in a westerly
direction, turns to the left and runs in a southerly or
south-easterly direction on the opposite side of the
mountains to which it had run up north, and only at
a few miles' distance.
After getting out of the ferry-boat, we skirted the left
bank of the Orontes, going up the stream, and arrived at
a Turkoman village, the headman of which, who was well
known to the English Consul at Aleppo, pressed us to stay,
as it was getting late and the road was bad. He found

72 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
some difficulty in providing us with a guide, a sturdy youth
who trotted on by our side. We shortly met a merchant
with a caravan of horses and mules, laden with mer
chandise from Antioch — the first which had attempted
the road since the rains — who reported the road as very
bad, and pointed to the state of some of his baggage
animals, which showed signs of having been completely
bogged, and we noticed that the mules had suffered
more than the horses. After a few miles, we had to leave
the low ground and ascend the hills which bound the
plain of Antioch, over which we had to ascend and
descend ; they were high and very steep : as soon as the
top of one was gained, we had to descend the other side,
to rise again immediately. The greater part of the way
was knee-deep, and we were bogged several times ; it
was a most fatiguing and trying journey for the horses.
There is a mountain in our front, behind which lies
Antioch, and which has to be turned. Just before sun
down we make the last descent and come upon the
Orontes ; we turn to the left round the foot of the high
mountain, and proceed along the road of rock and loose
stones which runs south, the way we are going, between
the mountains and the Orontes, the river on our right
hand. Before reaching Antioch, we come upon an old
causeway, probably Roman ; the mountain on our left
is perpendicular, and crowned by the remains of magni7
ficent military works, a wall running along the whole-
length, the deep intervening chasms being bridged
across. Just outside the city we find a hut, the occupier
being a vendor of coffee ; we halt and regale ourselves

Antioch. 73
with a small cup of that refreshing beverage, and enter
by Paul's Gate, where, tradition says, the Apostle gave
his farewell address on leaving Antioch. It is a stone
gateway ; the Orontes runs quite close on the right hand,
and beyond, on the right bank, is a line of lofty moun
tains clothed with woods and crowned with snow. The
sun had set, it was cold and fresh, but the air was very
pure and bracing, and there was a glorious clear sky of
deep violet.
We enter Antioch. It contains several parallel narrow
streets, and appears to be wedged closely in between
the Orontes and the perpendicular mountains. It has a
very curious appearance : the streets are only a few feet
wide ; in the centre is a deep channel, just wide enough
for a single horse to pass,' which serves for the double pur
pose of a horse road and drain ; on each side, at an eleva
tion of some two and a half feet, Is a paved footway, suffi
ciently wide for one person to walk. We have to traverse
the whole length of the city before the residence of the
English Vice-Consul is reached. The house is built on
piles by the side of the river, but owing to incessant
heavy rains and a succession of floods, it is now an island
in the river, the splendid waters of the Orontes running
all round it and under it, and almost reaching to the
floors of the upper storey. We halt in the roadway ; our
host who was to be, a Jew by religion, but I fancy an
Edomite by blood, came out into a little verandah over
the river to speak to us, and to direct his servants to
construct a floating bridge by which we might enter the
house.; his voice was drowned by the roar of rushing,

74 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
tumbling, rolling, sparkling water. A number of empty
packing-cases were set afloat, each being ballasted by
some large stone, and a plank was placed from the stairs
leading up to the verandah, to one of the floating cases,
then another and another, from case to case, until the
last reached the half-open door which admitted you
from the raised roadway, now partly under water, to the
house. Giving up my horse to my attendant, who took
himself and the horses to the bazaar, I essayed to cross
the novel swaying and unstable bridge, and had well-
nigh reached the stairs, when ill fortune attended me —
the last case slewed over, down went the plank, and I
was in the water, but grasping the stairs. This was not
pleasant ; for I was cold enough before, and, beyond a
brass pan with lighted charcoal, there was no fire in the .
house, and I was- without a change, my baggage being
hours and hours in the rear. It was now past seven
o'clock in the evening, and we had been riding since
half-past three in the morning, but my three-year-old
colt, a little over fourteen hands, had carried me well,
and was quite fresh the next morning. My baggage did
not arrive until late on the following afternoon.
Although I stayed but one day in Antioch to await
the arrival of my baggage, a few words devoted to a
description of a place of great historical interest, and
where the followers of our Lord were first called Chris
tians, cannot be out of place. Before I could go abroad I
had to provide myself with a pair of Turkoman boots of
red goatskin, for my own riding-boots of Russian leather
were so saturated by the mire of the bogs of the preceding

Antioch.

75

day's journey, and the immersion in the Orontes, that it
was impossible to get them on, and I presented, as the
Kaimakam of the city wittily remarked, a twofold appear
ance — European above, Turkish below. It was a beautiful
bright day, and the city and its fine surrounding scenery
were seen to advantage. The son of my host — a fair
young man, with a fresh complexion, light hair, and blue
eyes — and a young Christian Armenian, with black eyes
and hair, were my companions. The streets I have already
described. We visited the Christian church, a sufficiently
commodious building, but of no architectural beauty,
situate in an obscure part of the city. The priest who
showed us the edifice was a muscular Christian, a ruddy
Armenian of almost gigantic proportions. The Orontes
is crossed by a good stone bridge, called an " iron
bridge," which means a permanent bridge ; the parapets
have vanished, and occasionally things miss their way
and find themselves in the water : only a short time
before, the animals carrying the mail all went in and
were lost.
The change of horses on the arrival of the mail was
formerly an event of great interest in every town and
village of England, and so it is here, and we, as well as
•others, hurried forth to see the arrival of the mail from
Iskanderoon. It is announced by the cracking of whips :
a Tartar gallops in front, cracking his whip to clear the
way ; the mail, in leather cases or boxes, was carried on
this occasion on the backs of some half-dozen horses and
mules, which gallop along after the leading Tartar, while
a second brings up the rear, cracking his whip to keep

76 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
them up, and the whole escorted by a party of Zaptieh
(armed mounted horsemen). It is a pretty sight ; the mails
are delivered at the post-office, the horsemen water their
horses in the Orontes, and retire to the bazaar to refresh
themselves with pipes and coffee.
The Mussulman burying-ground is nicely placed
outside the city, on the slope of a hill looking south
down the valley, and the view'Is closed by a detached
and bold mountain, while one of a similar form is seen
as you look in a northerly direction ; some gigantic water-
wheels of about eighty feet in diameter, used to fill an
aqueduct with water from the river, to supply irrigation
to the land between the Orontes and the mountains, on
the west. The bridge was defended by two large towers
of stone. The water of the river is very good and is
much esteemed ; morning and evening, numbers of
women from the surrounding country come in and fill
their large jars and pitchers. The stream rushes by in
long, rolling, tumbling waves ; the water is transparent,
but of a brownish green colour. The only water I have
seen similar to it is that of the Abana, near Damascus.
The city suffered very much by the earthquake of 1 872,
as it always has by preceding ones, and a great part
of it was in ruins. The climate is said to be very
healthy, and it appeared to be most enjoyable, for the
air was pure, sweet, and bracing ; but the city invariably
suffers from cholera, and did not escape the visitation of
that scourge later in the summer of 1875.
The road to Beylan, " The Syrian Gates," is across the
river by the stone bridge before mentioned, and it runs

Antioch. jj
under the mountains on the west with the Lake of
Antioch on the east, to the right going to Beylan, and
for some miles there is a causeway about , eight feet
wide, but now in wretched condition. The Turks
seldom, if ever, repair anything. The stones which
form the causeway are pyramidal, and, for the most part,
at the present time, the apexes of these stones are upper
most, turned completely topsy-turvy ; so broken up is
the road, and the boggy soil so completely poached that
the horses frequently sink up to their girth between
these stones, and at times we had to dismount, and,
following the manner of the Zaptieh who was our guide,
we had to step from apex to apex while our horses were
floundering in the mire. These Zaptieh, from the
knowledge they have of the route by escorting the post
and patrolling the country, are the best of guides — merry,
cheerful, obliging fellows we generally found them.
Along the plain of Antioch, under the mountains, there
were the ruins of what I imagine had been villas and
country houses of the former wealthy inhabitants of
Antioch. As you ascend Mount Amanus from the
Antioch side, you come upon the causeway again,
running in places quite straight, and it is of a very steep
incline and is in a, comparatively speaking, tolerably
good state of repair. It looked to me like Roman
work.. On a detached peak, in the centre of a ravine
between two large spurs of Mount Amanus, are. the fine
and apparently very perfect remains of a castle of the
time of the Crusaders.
Until shortly before I was at Antioch, a school had

78 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
been maintained at the expense of an Englishman, in
which instruction in the Christian religion — I believe
according to the principles of the Church of England —
formed part of each day's work. Since the death of its.
supporter the school has been closed. The young
Armenian who accompanied me over the town and
neighbourhood was very anxious to have the school
reopened and to be appointed master, and he thought
his sister could manage a girls' school. He, and his sister
too, had been educated at Beirut. This young man told
me that he thought, in spite of the bigotry of the popu
lation of Antioch, which is proverbial, many of the
children of the Mussulman population, would attend the
school, and that the whole Jewish community would
gladly send their children ; and my host, the English
Vice-Consul, himself a Jew, corroborated this statement,
and, without any reservation, said all the Jewish children
would attend and receive the religious instruction.
Smith, of Antioch, was an Englishman who had
never learned his father's language, but spoke in Arabic.
He was a tall, powerful man, about thirty or thirty-five
years of age, broad shouldered, and with a ruddy com
plexion ; he was of the build and stamp to be seen
frequently among brewers' men. Although a native
of Antioch, he lived principally at Aleppo, and it was
there that I saw the Englishman who could not speak
English. He was once brought up before the Pasha for
fighting in the streets, his opponent or opponents
charging him with having dealt unfairly towards them
by using his fists.

CHAPTER VI.
BEIRUT — VALLEY OF BAKKAH — LEBANON AND
HERMON.
BEIRUT, washed by the blue waters of the Mediter
ranean, backed by snow-topped Lebanon, with Tripoli
to the north and Tyre to the south, as seen from the
sea, forms a charming picture, bright, sparkling, and
glorious in the sun ; calm and peaceful at eventide, sur
passing the Bay of Naples. Nor are you disappointed
on landing. It is clean ; there are fine houses, many of
which are enclosed by gardens, two good hotels, one
kept by an Arab, a tall fine man, who was Dragoman to
Eliott Warburton. There is one part of Beirut but
little visited, I fancy, by Europeans ; It Is inhabited by
well-to-do native artificers ; there are some good houses
of a medium class. It stands on an eminence shut out
from the port and the rest of the town, and commands a
beautiful view south towards Sidon. A deep blue sea, a
long slightly curved line of golden sand, dark green
foliage, and a clear blue sky, these simple elements
formed a gorgeous picture ; at least, so thought we, as in
midsummer we gazed on the tranquil waters reaching

80 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
down to Sidon. Although the heat was very great, here
the breeze was fresh and the air pure and lively. We
were told that sickness was almost unknown in this
district — that when Beirut itself was unhealthy and
cholera was raging, this place was always healthy. It is
a charming spot.
Between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon lies the beau
tiful wide valley called Bakkah, across which the high
road from Beirut to Damascus runs. This high-road,
formed by a French company, is a first-rate work, and
is kept in good order. The nights in Lebanon, even in
the height of summer, are more than cool, and in riding
through the night we did not find our greatcoats sufficient
to keep us comfortable.
At the time of which I am writing cholera was in
Damascus. Rumour had spoken of it for some time at
Beirut ; people were flocking to the mountains ; all con
veyance by carriages had been engaged for many days.
Numbers were also rushing from Damascus. As we
approached that city, caravans of people were leaving
for various places in the mountains or for Beirut ; dismay
was plainly marked upon the countenances of most.
There is a fine view of Mount Hermon on the
right hand as you descend Anti-Lebanon to Damascus,
topped with snow at midsummer, and perhaps a finer
one as you are leaving ; but the fresh sparkling waters
of the Abana, tumbling and rolling in long, large waves
as they rush along by the side of the road, at times
under arches formed by the overhanging branches of
trees, through the interstices of which is to be seen the

Beirut — Valley of Bakkah — Lebanon, etc. 81
rolling water glancing bright in the sunbeams, give a
charm to Damascus. There are fine detached houses
some little way from the city ; one, a large white one look
ing on to the river, wc particularly noticed. It belonged
to a wealthy Jew, and as we passed early in the morning
the windows and doors were all open, and we could see
into the house. There, in a principal room, seemed to
be assembled the whole family, and perhaps friends and
neighbours. All were sitting motionless : it was now
the house of mourning ; cholera had already taken one
victim. I shall probably never forget that household ;
calm sorrow and resignation sat on each countenance.
Although they did not seem to hold conversation among
themselves, one came out at once to give us some direction
and information. Here let me say a word of tribute of
a race but too often unjustly spoken of. When neither
love nor money could procure the means of flight from
Damascus, it was a Hebrew merchant who sent, in his
own carriage, an Englishman and his young wife on
their way to a place of safety, although he did not go
himself.

CHAPTER VII.
SHEM, HAM, AND JAPHETH.
IN Syria are to be seen, in distinct groups, the de
scendants of the postdiluvian fathers of mankind,
occupying the precise positions and showing the cha
racteristics described briefly, but so distinctly, in the tenth
chapter of Genesis. In the towns you see varied
examples of the Japhethic race : the Turkoman, as a
conqueror, and who has enlarged himself by conquest,
sitting or resting indolently and comparatively unmoved
by the stirring events of the times, until aroused by
war's alarms, indolent and apparently apathetic, care
less of others, bold and capable of much exertion when
aroused, enduring and patient under reverses ; the
dark, sinister, and wily descendants of Javan, having
their avocations in localities in which anything is to
be made, often holding high positions, but in all cases
tending to general enlargement by individual efforts to
enlarge themselves. The glorious Shemite, full of noble
qualities, beautiful in form, full of poetry and imagina
tion, with inherent good taste and appreciation of the
good and the beautiful, free, open-handed and generous,

Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 83
courteous to strangers, lively and vivacious with his own
people, but free from and incapable of vulgarity, quiet
in demeanour before strangers, of innate pride, or rather
a consciousness of natural superiority ; not naturally a
fighting race for the sake of conquest, but tenacious in
the extreme to retain, and capable of exhibiting heroic
courage. Children of Ham are seen here, but not in great
numbers. As a servant of servants to Shem and
Japheth, the son of Canaan is happy, contented, self-
important, and often a very important member of the
establishment of which he may form a part, and, so far
as I have seen, invariably treated with kindness. You
see him at times as a kind of major-domo in the house of
some great man or high official, dressed in a black frock-
coat, with the Turkish fez, and in this guise looking
ludicrous enough, but almost ordering his superiors by
birth, nature, and position, as if he were their lord. In
many instances the black women become perfect tyrants
in the household of those who have fed and kept them all
their lives, and to such an extent that the daughters of
the house have had to leave their homes and turn out of
doors instead of the slave. As the servant of servants
to the Arab Shaykhs in the desert, he is an obedient and
willing attendant, knowing and keeping his place, trusted
and well cared for.
In the plains at certain seasons of the year, when
the Turkomans descend from the mountains to feed
their flocks, are to be seen specimens of, this family
of the Japhethic race with Shem's descendants, the

84 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Arab Badaween ; these latter, for the most part, are
of such tribes as are engaged with their camels as
carriers. In appearance and manners there is a decided
difference. The Turkoman, broad-faced, often with
prominent cheekbones, broad-shouldered, and large of
limb, frequently with bandy legs, of a stolid countenance,
often indicative of good nature, but generally with
out betraying any feeling for others. These often, or
generally, live in hastily constructed huts. Their sheep
dogs rush out at you as you approach, almost to the
verge of assailing you. You must drive them back
yourself, for the Turkoman will come out and stare at
you stolidly or stupidly, or maybe in good humour, but
he does not think of calling back his dogs. Pass on a
few hundred yards to where a party of Badaween are
seated under an awning from the midday sun, and ask
for a drink of water. A dog may bark or rush out, but
he is instantly recalled and rebuked ; there is emulation
among them who shall be the first to give you water.
Mark the kind smile of welcome. By his natural
courtesy, expressive countenance, and often fine fea
tures, the Shemite, long of limb and of graceful bear
ing, forms a strong contrast to those sons of Japheth
you have just left.
These are only notes made from what I have seen
in the nineteenth century ; I am not stating any views
or principles. The words which gave the characteristics
of the people and foretold their future history and
destiny were pronounced four thousand years ago :

Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 85
" Blessed be the Lord God of Shem ; and Canaan shall
be his servant. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall
dwell in the tents of Shem ; and Canaan shall be his
servant" (Gen. ix. 26, 27).

PART II.

CHAPTER I.
ARABIA.
ARABIA forms the largest part of the Semitic peninsula.
The natural boundaries of Arabia are — on the west,
the Red Sea, Palestine, and Syria ; on the south the
Arabian Sea ; on the east the Persian Gulf ; and on the
north-east and north the river Euphrates, extending as
far north as to where the confines of Syria reach to the
Euphrates. Arabs have had from a very early period settlements
beyond these natural boundaries, and have been estab
lished in every part of the Semitic peninsula, from the
mountains of Armenia to the Arabian Sea, in Syria, and
the country between the Euphrates and the Tigris ; and
at present a very large proportion of that vast district
between the two rivers is occupied by Arab tribes.
A chain of mountains, at a comparatively short dis
tance from the sea on the west, runs from Mount
Amanus in the north, through Syria, Al-Hijaz, and
Yaman, and prolonged along the southern coast past
Aden to, Oman, of which province Muscat is the capital ;
for the mountains in Yaman are nothing more than a

90 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
prolongation of the Lebanon, or perhaps, more precisely,
the Anti-Lebanon range. Inwards from this chain or
circuit of mountains lies the desert, within which again,
between Al-Hijaz and Al-Hasa on the Persian Gulf, the
provinces of the Najd and Jabal Shammar are situate.
The name of Arabia is said to have been derived
from Arabah, a place of Tehama, a region the limits of
which are differently considered by various people in
Arabia. Arabah was situate between the mountains and
the Red Sea. The word " Tehama " means vehement
heat, and as an expression has been applied to a far
greater extent of country than that around Arabah, and
sometimes to denote the whole of the southern half of
Arabia in opposition to the northern portion. The
Arabians derive their name from Arabah. " Diverse are
the opinions concerning the denomination of the Arabs,
but the most certain of all is that which draws it from
Arabah, which is part of the region of Tehama, which
their father Ismail afterwards inhabited." *
From Arabah the whole peninsula of the Arabs was
called Arabia, and the people acquired the name of
Arabs. Aram and the Land of Uz were probably the
names given to the two earliest divisions of the whole
peninsula — Aram to Syria, and the Land of Uz to the
rest of the peninsula, or perhaps, excluding the deserts,
to the habitable parts thereof.
Al-Hijaz and Al- Yaman were names anciently used
to denote two separate countries and kingdoms in the
southern portion of the peninsula of the Arabs. These
* "Note Spec. Plist. Arab.," Pocock.

Arabia. 91
two countries may be more definitely defined as lying
between the deserts and the Red Sea ; but In early days
I think the whole country lying between the Red Sea
and the Persian Gulf was divided into two parts, called
Al-Hijaz and Al-Yaman — the former in the north, and
the latter in the south. Afterwards this portion of the
peninsula of the Arabs became divided into several
provinces, under the names of Al-Hijaz, Najd including
the regions and districts of Khaibar, Kasym Yamamah,
etc., and Jabal Shammar, Yaman, Kahtan, Najran, Ha-
dramaut, Shihir, Oman, and the lesser provinces, now
included in Oman, Bahrein, and Al-Hasa on the Persian
Gulf. The inhabitants were Semitic with very few excep
tions, such as the Canaanitish families who had seized
upon part of Aram and Palestine. Such foreign elements
are not reckoned by the Arabs to have any part in
them, and were principally families passing through this
land, and, if settled, seemed to have been expelled at an
early period. Aram peopled the north and gave his name
to the country now known as Syria. The remaining
portion of the peninsula was peopled by Uz (written
Auz in Arabic), the son of Aram, the son of Shem, by
families of Arphaxad and Lud-, sons of Shem, and by
one of the sons of Eber. Elam and Asshur were settled
on the banks of the Tigris, in the south and north
respectively. It is probable that Aram, with his family or posterity,
proceeded along the left bank of the Euphrates, which
river , they would cross at or near Birijek.to pass into and

92 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
settle in Syria, on the west side of the desert, and which
country has gone by his name, Aram.
From Uz or Auz came Ad and the Adites, which
people spread themselves abroad shortly after the Flood,
over the southern half of the Arabian peninsula, as did
also Thamud and the Thamudites. Thamud was the
son of Gether, the son of Aram. Ad and the Adites
would appear to have spread over the more southern
districts, including Hadramaut, and to Aden, while Tha
mud occupied the more northern portion of the Land of
Uz. A family from Lud proceeded to the neighbour
hood of what was afterwards named Sanaa in Yaman ;
and about the same time, or shortly afterwards, Joktan,
the son of Eber, penetrated into Arabia, whose descend
ants were contemporary for a considerable period with
the other Semitic families in the peninsula of the Arabs.
Arphaxad, the grandfather of Eber, was In Ur of the
Chaldees, and from Peleg, the other son of Eber, some
time later, came Abram, who when called to leave the
land of his nativity for Canaan, I have no doubt, pro
ceeded also up the course of Euphrates and crossed at
Birijek — for it is not consistent to suppose he travelled
straight across the desert — and stopped at Haran, which
I consider to have been the Hauroun, near Damascus,
until the death of his father, when he entered the Land
of Canaan. The Arabians, although of Semitic race, were of
three kinds : the old or lost Arabians, the indigenous
Arabians, and the instituted Arabians.
There were several families or tribes of the old or

Arabia. 93
lost Arabians. The names of the principal families
which have come down to us are those of Ad, Thamud,
Tasm, and Jadis. They were called old or lost Arabians,
because they perished or were exterminated, any small
remnants becoming absorbed among the Indigenous
Arabians. The indigenous Arabians were those descended from
Joktan, the son of Eber.
The instituted Arabs were those who came from Ish-
mael, the son of Abraham, or from the union of Ishmael
with the Jorhamites, who .were the indigenous or Joktanic
Arabs in Hijaz, and were so called because the Arabs
say that as Ishmael by birth was a Hebrew and adopted
the language, customs, and manners of the indigenous
Arabs, he became instituted.
It is to be noticed that the old or lost Arabians
were of the same race and of identical origin with the
original Semitic inhabitants of Aram or Syria ; that
the indigenous Arabs were not only of the same race,
but were also of the same family, as the children of
Israel, both having sprung from one common ancestor,
Eber, through his two sons Joktan and Peleg ; and the
instituted Arabs were either direct from Abraham, or
were formed by the ingrafting of the stock of Abraham
upon the collateral line with his own from Eber, who
" was the father of all the children of Eber."
Arabian history is divided into two epochs — that
which was before the time of Mohammed, and that from
him until now, which has been called " times of igno
rance" and the "times of Islam." But that the times

94 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
before Mohammed were not those of ignorance is well
ascertained. Dr. Pocock, in his " Spec. Hist. Arab.," *
says, " But the state of the Arabs in the times of igno
rance was celebrated by strength and power." A recent
writer, Dr. Emanuel Deutsch, in speaking of the Arabic
language, says, " This language must have an age equal
at least to that of the other two sister dialects (Hebrew
and Aramaic)." There are phenomena in it which prove
its early and most independent existence (with reference
to other Semitic dialects) ; and, further, in the earliest
historical times the Arabs had great renown for wisdom,
which we should now call literary proficiency. " Two
things," says the same author, " must be borne in mind
to explain how little or nothing should have sur
vived of that literature which certainly must have been
prodigal among them (the Arabs), viz. that it was
oral, and that it was in verse, or at least rhythmical
sayings and poems of which a vague Arabic tradition
still speaks ; and Mohammed, for reasons of his own,
discouraged, nay condemned poetry, the sole vehicle of
all science, all tradition, all religion before-him, in the
times of ignorance;" and further, says the same author,
" The last century before Mohammed has left us a few
traces of pre-Islamic literature. It embraced wellnigh
all the branches of human knowledge and research."
Of the Old or Lost Arabians.
The Adites came from Ad, the son of Uz or Auz,
the son of Aram, the son of Shem. They were a very
warlike and mighty people, and left behind many monu-
* Page 3.

Arabia.

95

ments of their power. Sheddad, the son of Ad, was their
first king, and was succeeded by many of his posterity.
The Adites would seem to have been the most
powerful of all the surrounding nations. Tradition
speaks of their conquests ; their armies were composed
of immense numbers of horsemen, clothed in shirts of
mail. They inhabited Al-Ahkaf, a region in Hadra-
maut, lying between Yaman and Oman. Their con
quests, it is said, extended over almost the whole of the
southern half of the peninsula. This proud, haughty, and
rebellious people speedily forgetting their allegiance to
the Almighty, and turning away from His worship, the
prophet Hud, supposed by some to have been the same
as Eber, was sent by Jehovah to reclaim them ; refus
ing for the most part to listen to the warnings of the
prophet, they were destroyed by a storm and an irrup
tion of sand which lasted eight nights and seven days,
and which destroyed them and overwhelmed their cities,
with the exception of a small believing remnant which
had followed Hud to a place of safety. "Al-Ahkaf"
means tortuous or winding sands, a name given to the
region probably to mark the event in history. This
catastrophe devastated a country which, it must be pre
sumed, was formerly rich and fertile, burying vestiges
of the past, and not Improbably concealing treasure for
the future.
Thamud.
Thamud was the son of Gether, the son of Aram,
son of Shem. The Thamudites were called the people

96 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of Saleh, because that patriarch * was sent to invite
them to return to the worship of the one true, only God.
A few listened to the admonition and were saved ; the
rest, requiring a sign, were destroyed by a direct judg
ment from heaven.
The people of Thamud were located in the region
about Hejr, lying between Hijaz, Najd, and Syria, to the
east and north of Madina, formerly Yatribah, and on
the western confines of Najd — a very important position ;
a junction of several routes to Syria, the Euphrates,
Najd from Mekka, and in going south from the
Euphrates and Syria to Yaman. Certain of the
Thamudites who dwelt in Yaman were expelled by
Hamyar. It is probable that the Thamudites were
settled throughout the whole extent of the peninsula,
from the Lower Euphrates to the Mount Sinai penin
sula, north of the Adites, but not perhaps at one and
the same time. It is said they lived in houses cut out
of the rocks. Mr. Lewis Burckhardt records that on the
west side of Hejr some low mountains bound the
plain, in which are large caves, or habitations, cut out
of the rock, with sculptured figures of men and various
animals, and small pillars on both sides of the entrance,
and that the Badaween say numerous inscriptions are
over the doors.t Similar habitations are found in the
Najd and in the Sinai district.
* Bochart and others think Phaleg and not Saleh.
t See "Travels in Arabia," Appendix, page 457, by J. Lewis Burck
hardt.

Arabia. 97
The Tribes Tasm and Jadis.
Both of these tribes utterly perished. A law of so
intolerant a nature was instituted by the ruler of the
Tasm (in whom was vested the government of both
peoples) against the Jadis, that the latter rose against
the Tasm on the occasion of a festival, and put the
greater part of the Tasm to the sword. The aid of the
reigning Tobaa of Yaman was sought by the ruler of
the Tasm, which was obtained, and the Jadis were exter
minated by an unconditional slaughter, since which time
the memory of both has passed away. These peoples
seem to have been smaller tribes located in or near
Yaman, and to have been subject to the Hamyarite
dynasty of Yaman.
Of THE Amalekites.
The Arab historian, Abulfeda, says the Amalekites
were the descendants of Amalek, the son of Lud, the
son of Shem. After the confusion of tongues they dwelt
at Sanaa, in the dominion of Yaman, from whence they
transferred their settlement to Mekka, and exterminated
by a total slaughter those nations which had provoked
them to war. A certain part of the Amalekites settled
in Syria. These are those whom Moses fought against,
and under him Joshua. From these the Pharaohs of
Egypt had their origin ; also from these some possessed
Yatribah and Khaibar and the neighbouring region of
that country. And another author says that Moses sent
H

98 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
an army against the Amalekites who dwelt in Khaibar,
Yatribah, and in other places of Hijaz, and commanded
that the Amalekites should be utterly destroyed. Moses
may have been a clerical error ; for in the margin of
the manuscript is written " not Moses, but in fact
Samuel." *
There can be no doubt these are the Amalekites
who attacked the children of Israel on their way from
Egypt to Canaan, who were overcome by Joshua
in person under the direction of Moses, and against
whom unremitting war was to be waged, generation
after generation, by the divine command, whose final
doom was pronounced by Balaam, and the same to
whom reference is made in Genesis xiv. in the time of
Abraham and Chederlaomer, and not the descendants
of Amalek, the grandson of Esau.
Amalek, their ancestor, being the son of Lud and
grandson of Shem, was one generation nearer to Shem
than the Adites, and two nearer than the Joktanic
Arabs, and having apparently preceded the Adites and
Joktanic Arabs in the occupation of the peninsula of
the Arabs, by their early occupation of Sanaa in Yaman,
would fully account for the expression of Balaam in his
parable, when he says, " Amalek was the first of the
nations." The Amalekites were smitten by Moses and Joshua
in Rephidim (Exodus xvii. : " Then came Amalek, and
fought with Israel in Rephidim "), and this battle took
place, I expect, after the death of Miriam in Kadesh,
* " Excerpta ex Abulfeda," by I. Silvestre de Sacy.

Arabia. 99
and not immediately after the exodus from Egypt,
probably just before the death of Aaron at Mount Hor,
and perhaps after Edom had refused the Israelites a
passage through his country.
Saul, by direction given by Samuel the seer, "smote
the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to
Shur, that is over against Egypt," which district, wher
ever it may have been, is apparently the same as that
inhabited by the sons of Ishmael ; and the rest of the
Amalekites who had escaped were smitten in Mount
Seir by the sons of Simeon in the days of Hezekiah.*
We must consider that there were at least two places
called Havilah, the one mentioned in Genesis ii., en
compassed by the river Pison, as different and far
removed from the other, which probably had its name
from Havilah, one of the sons of Joktan. The former
presumedly situate between the Caspian and the Black
Seas, and celebrated for its gold, from which may
have been derived the legend of the Golden Fleece.
(The tradition of the good gold of that district may
have been carried to Greece by the Phoenician colonists.)
For the second Havilah we should look, I think, to
the east of Shur, and probably also considerably south,
which might also be inferred from the expression " from
Havilah to Shur as thou goest towards Assyria," if Shur
be regarded as a landmark on the way from one country
to the other, unless indeed the description has reference
only to Shur as being on the way from Egypt to Assyria.
The sacred history does not state how long Saul was
* 1 Chron. iv. 43.

100 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
absent on his expedition, nor where Havilah was ; It is
possible Saul did not smite the Amalekites in one place
only, but probably in several places between the two
given points.
The Arab version would imply several places between
Hijaz and Syria.
The Amalekites were probably expelled from Mekka
and the neighbourhood by Jorham, and, proceeding
north through Hijaz, left settlements in different
districts. Some settled in Syria, says Abulfeda — the
country of the Amalekites is mentioned in Scripture in
the days of Abraham and of Chederlaomer (in the south
of Syria or north of Hijaz)* — others proceeding into
Egypt, there founded the dynasty of the Pharaohs. The
order of succession of events is very correct and in
accordance with chronology. The Amalekites seize upon
Mekka and slaughter the former Inhabitants, and then
are expelled by the grandson of Eber. Besides the tribes
already mentioned, a former Jorham tribe (not to be
mistaken for that in Hijaz, which people settled there
under Jorham, the son of Joktan), and those of Amtem,
Hashem, Abyl, and Bar, are mentioned as having been in
Arabia. Of this Jorham tribe nothing further need be
said than that the Arabs say they were descendants of
Ad, that they utterly perished, and their memory was
obliterated. Nothing Is known of the others ; It is not even said,
so far as I am aware, that they were of Semitic origin,
and it is possible they rnay have been families of Ham's
* Gen. xiv. 7.

Arabia. 101
posterity on their way to Africa. I have met with some
ground for supposition that the people called Bar did
proceed to that continent, or were driven there from
Arabia. Ad, Thamud, Tasm, Jadis, and the Amalekites are
accounted for, and the former Jorham. It is, I think,
very probable that the other peoples may have been
those spoken of in the history of the Amalekites ; that
they were in the country of Mekka (Hijaz) at the time
of the invasion of the Amalekites, after they had left
Sanaa, and were those who provoked the Amalekites
to war, and were utterly exterminated, with perhaps the
exception of some from Bar, who may have escaped into
Africa. Of these former Arabian families, Ad and Thamud
may be considered lost and not destroyed ; for there is
sufficient reason for the supposition that a believing
remnant from these two great peoples became absorbed
among the Joktanic Arabs. I expect that the Adites
were the principal nation in Arabia until their over
throw, when the power and consequence of the Joktanic
Arabs became greatly increased.
Of the Joktanic Arabs.
Two kingdoms were established by the Joktanic
Arabs. It is said that Kahtan of the Arabs, the same
with Joktan of Scripture, the son of Eber, the son of
Salah, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son
of Noah, himself first wore the diadem in Yaman. One

102 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of his sons, Yaarab or Jareb, succeeded him in Yaman,
while Jorham, another son, founded a dynasty in Hijaz.
It will be seen by reference to Genesis x. that
Joktan had thirteen sons, whereas certain Arab authors
state he had thirty-one sons, born of one mother,
but that the rest set out from Arabia and occupied
regions in India.
Without attempting to account for the discrepancy
between the two accounts of the number of Joktan s
sons, and that Yaarab and Jorham are not among those
names mentioned in sacred history, there are certain
things well worthy of remark. The thirty-one sons may
have been a clerical error in transcribing manuscripts
in later days, or one that may have very easily occurred
by oral tradition. Hazarmaveth, the name of one of
Joktan's sons given in Genesis x. and Chronicles, has
been identified, says Dean Alford, with Hadramaut, a
province situate between Yaman and Oman, forming
part of Yaman in the larger acceptance of the term, and
the region occupied by the Adites. Sanaa, the capital of
Yaman, a very ancient city, was in former times called
Azal, and Uzal was the name of one of the sons of
Joktan given In Genesis x. Jerah was the name of
another son, and Yaarab, the son of Joktan, who suc
ceeded his father in Yaman, was also called Jareb.
Jareb or Yaarab was the father of the Arabs in Yaman,
and called the father of Arabic, because he was the first
who changed his dialect from primitive Hebrew or
Syriac, or the original Semitic language ; it is possible
at that time his name was changed from Jareb to

Arabia. 103
Yaarab, and if the same with Jerah in Genesis x.,
that in the change of dialect which took place in the
days of Yaarab the final H became a B. And might
not Jorham, or as some would write it Djorham, the son
of Joktan, who founded the dynasty in Hijaz, be the
same, in the new or Arabic dialect of his brother
Yaarab, as Hadoram* in the primitive Hebrew or original
Semitic tongue, who was one of the sons of Joktan
mentioned in Genesis x. ?
And I think it is quite possible that Havilah and the
other names in Genesis may be yet identified with
names in Arabia. Havilah in the Scriptures is a
landmark in history and geography, as Hejr (^f?1) 1S
in Arabic history.
It must be borne in mind that the Joktanic Arabs
were not merely the successors to the lost tribes of
Arabians, but were also their contemporaries ; their
importance increased (without doubt) after the others
had been swept away. The kings of Yaman held sway
over Yaman in its greatest extent, and continued, almost
without interruption, until the time of Mohammed.
After the Joktanic rule had been established in
Yaman and Hijaz by Yaarab and Jorham, and main
tained for some descents, a third Semitic and kindred
element is brought into Arabian history by Ishmael, the
son of Abraham and Hagar, who became connected and
naturalized with the Jorhamites. This forms a very
important epoch in the history of the Arabs. There
* Compare 2 Sam. viii. 10 with I Chron. xviii. 10, where the son of
Toi or Tou is called in Samuel Joram, and in Chronicles Hadoram.

104 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
can be but little doubt this event has been the cause
of their wonderful history and uninterrupted possession
of this country ; there are even some among Arab
authors who assert that there are now no other than
Ishmaelitish Arabs to be found.
But, according to the generally received opinion, the
Arabs trace a twofold origin from Joktan and Adnan, the
descendant of Ismail. This is the accepted opinion
among historians : from Joktan are descended the pure,
genuine Arabs ('ij \x]\ CjytM) ; from Adnan the insti
tuted or made Arabs (<^*^*~l' L^jS^). The Arabs
trace their descent up to Adnan instead of to Ismail,
because up to Adnan there is an uninterrupted line
of ascent ; whereas there is some controversy con
cerning those who come in succession between Is
mail and Adnan, all not being agreed as to the exact
number of descents, and some maintaining that certain
names were replications. But there are some who
hold that the descendants from both Joktan and Is
mail are instituted Arabs, with this difference, that
they call those from Joktan <3o jcJ,^ (Mota-Arabs) ;
those from Adnan, as further removed, ^j*"' ¦¦'¦>>»' (Most-
Arabs) ; and reckon neither one nor the other as pure
Arabs. They consider the pure Arabs to have been
those only of Ad, Thamud, Tasm, Jadis, and Jorham,
with the addition of three other tribes, Amalek, Am-
tem, and Hashem, and some say Abyl and Bar, of
which tribes mention has been made. But Dr. Pocock

Arabia. 105
expects that this is an error made by a scribe. These
tribes perished, except certain remains mixed up with
the remaining or existing tribes, and it is supposed
that there are not any who can be reckoned by the
name of pure Arabs. There are some who reckon
Kahtan himself, whom the Arabs place as the father
of their principal tribes, to have been of the posterity
of Ismail, and that there are not any other than
Ismailitish Arabs to be found now, by which very
same name they are spoken of by the Chaldean and
Arab paraphrasers, Genesis xxxvii. But, as has been
said before, the general opinion, which Dr. Pocock seems
to follow, is that the Arabs who remain are of a double
origin — that it Is conceded that those from Kahtan are
pure, and those from Ismail Most-, or instituted Arabs.
This reason is assigned for the name, because their
father Ismail in origin and by language was not Arab,
but Hebrew ; after he had contracted a relationship with
the Jorhamites, he accustomed himself to their dialect,
manner, and institution of life, and his descendants grew
together with them, i.e. the Jorhamites, into one nation.
" Kahtan was the same as Joktan, the son of Eber.
So Scholiates Epist. of Ibn Abdun, the poet : jjUaJb
il]^Aj^3 %%s (Yoktan, who is Kahtan); which being
allowed, R. Sadias has substituted for ppi ^Uajs^jl
(Kahtan) in his Arabic version of the Pentateuch, and
Georgius ibn 'al Amid al-Maka, in the first part of his
history, calls Joktan the father of the Arabs." *
* Pocock's " Spec. Hist. Arabum."

106 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Of the Joktanic Arabs in Yaman, and of Tribes
and Families descended from them.
Joktan, or Kahtan, was the first of this family who
reigned in Yaman, from whom descended princes,
rulers, and Tobaa. This last title seems to have de
noted imperial rule extending beyond the limits of the
original kingdom, over smaller principalities and pro
vinces ; it is said no prince was distinguished by the
title of Tobaa unless he was possessed of Saba, Hamyar,
and Hadramaut. The title had its counterpart in that
of Khalif. Yaarab, or Jareb, the son of Kahtan, succeeded
his father. He was called the father of Arabic,
because in his time some change took place in the
language — the first divergence from the primitive
Hebrew or Syriac, probably the original Semitic lan
guage spoken up to that time by the Joktanic Arabs, in
common with all the descendants of Shem.
Yashhab, the son of Yaarab, succeeded his father.
Abd Shems (the servant of the sun), also surnamed
Saba, succeeded his father Yashhab. It is said that all
the tribes and kings of the Arabs of Yaman trace their
origin from Saba. Truly, his sons were very numerous,
from among the number of which Hamyar, Kahlan,
Amru, and Ashar are specially mentioned.
From Hamyar, besides the ruling families, came
many families of Hamyarites, which soon became so
well established that the term Hamyarite was used to

Arabia. 107
express generally the Arabs of Yaman, the dialect, and
most things in Yaman.
A certain Hamyarite, Kodaah by name, was the father
of many Hamyaritic tribes, but which were called after
his name, Kodaah. From these came — (1.) Kalb, and
from him the Banu Kalb, his sons, who afterwards
migrated to and occupied Dumat al-Jandal, Tabuk, and
the furthest boundaries of Syria Damascus. (2.) Bahra.
(3.) Jahainah, which was a great tribe, and subdivided
into several tributary families. This people dwelt in the
eastern parts of Hijaz, near the sea-coast at Jeddah-
" Among the Jahainahites truth is spoken " * was a pro
verb in frequent use among the Arabs. (4.) Baly.
(5.) Tanuk, which tribe was ennobled by having given
birth to the celebrated poet Abul'ola almoari. (6.) Salih
and Banu Salih, which people migrated from Yaman,
and settled in Syria, but when conquered and dispos
sessed by the kings of Ghassan (Arabs), dwelt in the
neighbouring desert. (7.) Banu Adhrah. (8.) Banu
Nahd. (9.) Shaaban.
The Posterity of Kahlan, the Son of
Abd Shems.
Among the different tribes from Kahlan, seven are
to be mentioned : (1.) Al-Azd. (2.) Tay. (3.) Madhej.
(4.) Hamdan. (5.) Kendah. (6.) Morad. (7.) Anmar.
These separate tribes contained various families.
i. The chief families from the tribe Azd were —
(1.) Gassan, who dispossessed Banu Salih, and reigned
* Literally, "With the Jahainah report is positive knowledge.''

108 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
in Syria Damascus in their stead. (2.) Al-Aus. (3.)
Al-Khazaraj, who dwelt at Yathirah (Madina), from
which tribe it is said were those who assisted Moham
med in his flight. (4.) Khozaah ; which tribe, having
been obliged to depart from Yaman on account of the
inundation of Arem, betook themselves to the valley
of Marrah, near Mekka, and held the chief power and
custody of the keys of the Kaaba, until at length a
certain Abu Gahshan, when drunk, sold them to Kosalh,
of the Koraish tribe. (5.) Barek, which people derived
their name from the place near which they settled.
(6.) Daus, who occupied a kingdom on the confines of
Erack. (7.) Atik. (8.) Gafek. Also Banu'l-Jalandah,
who were kings of Oman, each one of whom was styled
Al-Jalandah.
Of the Tay Tribe.
ii. Tay or Tai, the same as Odad, was the son of
Zeid, the son of Kahlan, and ancestor of all the families
of Tay. The Tay, formerly settled in Yaman, were obliged
to seek fresh settlements on account of the great in
undation of Arem, and settled in Najd (a province of
Hijaz), near the mountains Aja and Salma, and which
in consequence are called the Tay Mountains. The
families of the Tay were — (1.) Jadilah. (2.) Nabhan.
(3.) Baulan. (4.) Salaman : from the Salaman came
Banu Bahtar. (5.) Hana: from Hana came Aiyas,
the son of Kabisah, who, after the Christian era, suc
ceeded Noaman in the kingdom of Hira. (6.) Sodus,

Arabia. , 109
which is a distinct family from that Sodus which came
from the posterity of Rabiah, and, according to Al-
Jauhari, is also distinguished from the family of Shaiban.
(7.) Banu Thai, or Thoal, are reckoned as descendants
from Sodus : the sons of Thai, or Thoal, who (says Al-
Jauhari) was the father of a tribe among the Tay, from
which was Amru ibn al-Masihy, who was most skilful in
the use of the bow.
Hatem brought renown to the Tay, celebrated in
song among the Arabs as the most generous of men, to
such an extent, that when they wish to mark a man of
distinguished beneficence, they say, "Liberal as Hatem."
iil. There were many families derived from Madhej,
from among these (1.) Khawlan. (2.) Janb. (3.) Aud.
(4.) Banu Saad. It would appear that Saad during his
lifetime had a band of three hundred men, descended
from him, who followed him on horseback ; he called
these his own begotten to keep off the glance of the
envious eye ; they were known by the name of " Saad
al-Ashirah," the Saad family. From these came Jafy
and Zabaid (Al-Matanabhi, the celebrated poet, was a
descendant of Jafy). (5.) Al-Nakhaa. (6.) Ans.
iv. Hamdan : the tribes from Hamdan were cele
brated both before and after the time of Mohammed.
v. Kendah was the name given to Thaur because he
repudiated or disowned his ancestors : quod Patris erga
se beneficentiam inficiatus est. From Kendah were de
rived the following families : Sakasek and Sakun.
vi. The descendants of Morad were settled in the
mountains of Yaman, near Zabid.

no Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
vii. From Anmar were two families, Bajilah and Kha-
thaam. From the Bajilah family was descended a certain
Jarir, one of the companions of Mohammed, who was
called Joseph on account of his wonderful beauty, and
perhaps also from his excellence ; for a poet has said —
" If it were not for Jarir, Bajilah would perish.
How good a boy ! how bad a tribe ! "
Concerning these two tribes, Bajilah and Khathaam, it
is doubted now if they were by origin from Yaman, or
whether they came from Maad and settled in Yaman.
These are the principal families descended from
•Kahlan, the son of Abd Shems, surnamed Saba.
Amru and Ashaar, sons of Abd Shems.
The tribes derived from Amru, the son of Saba,
were — (i.) Lakhem, from whom came Mumdur, that
celebrated family of kings of Hira, and also Banu'1-Dar,
whose father, Abdu'1-Dar, derived his name from the
Arab idol Dar. (2.) Jotham, but which tribe Al-Jauhari
and others reckon as from Maad, and not of Yaman, and
which was settled in the mountains of Hesmai. Jotham,
however, had two sons, Josham and Joram, who were
the ancestors of all the Jothamites.
From Ashaar, the son of Saba, came Banu'l-Ashaar,
and called Al-Ashaaraiween. Al-Jauhari places Ashaar
as the son of Saba, the son of Yashhab, but Al-Firau-
zabad states he was Nabt, a son of Od, and was called
Ashaar because he was hairy when he was born.
The Banu Ameleh are also accounted of the pos-

Arabia. in
terity of Ameleh, a son of Saba, and are one of those
eight tribes which departed from Yaman, on account of
the inundation of Arem, for Syria Damascus, and settled
near Damascus in a mountain called by them Mount
Ameleh. Concerning the people of Ameleh, Al-Jauhari
informs us that they were truly Yamanites of the pos
terity of Saba, but maintains — and so does certainly
Al-Firauzabad — that they had their origin from Kosed.
Of the Kings and Tobaa of Yaman.
i. Kahtan, that is Joktan, the son of Eber, was the
first who reigned in Yaman and assumed the diadem.
2. Yaarab, the son of Joktan, succeeded his father.
Yaarab was the first who spoke Arabic — in his time a
dialect diverging from the former mother Semitic
tongue had its origin.
3. Yashhab succeeded his father Yaarab.
4. Abd Shems (servant of the sun), son of Yashhab,
succeeded his father ; he was surnamed Saba. He
was a powerful prince, successful in war, and built that
celebrated reservoir in the neighbourhood of Saba, or
Mareb, which city he also built. As it would appear
the former name of the city was Mareb, it is possible
Abd Shems may have added to the city, for the name
seems to have been changed from Mareb to Madinah
Saba, the city of Saba.
Some maintain that Mareb was the name of the
citadel, and Saba the name of the city; others that
Mareb was the surname of a king who reigned in
Yaman.

112 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
5. Hamyar, the son of Abd Shems, succeeded his
father. He was so named because he generally appeared
in red clothes. He drove out Thamud from Yaman into
Hijaz ; and Al-Jannabi and Ahmed, the son of Joseph,
relate that he was the first of the Hamyaritic kings who
placed a diadem of gold upon his head.
6. Wayel, the son of Hamyar, succeeded, so relates
Abulfeda ; but some maintain that Kahlan succeeded
to his brother Hamyar, and for Wayel have Wathel.
7. Al-Saksak succeeded his father Wayel. Al-
Jauhari calls Saksak the son of Wayel.
8. Yaafar succeeded his father Saksak.
9. Thu Ryash, or Dhu Riyash, whose name was
Aamer, was of the posterity Aufaus, a son of Hamyar.
10. Al-Naman, or Al Noaman, the son of Yaafar,
called Al-Maafer, who having collected forces, put Aamer
to flight and took the kingdom.
1 1. Asmah, the son of Noaman, succeeded his father.
12. Shaddad, the son of Ad, the son of Al-Matatah, a
son of Saba (Abd Shems). He extended his relations or
conquests to the remote west, and left many remains of
his power. 13. Lakman, the brother of Shaddad, succeeded to
the throne. But Al-Jannabi has placed Morthed (who
was surnamed Thu Aud) after Shaddad (whom Al-
Firauzabad relates reigned six hundred years), then
Amru, the son of Morthed.
14. Then Sadad succeeded his brother (Lakman).
15. Al-Hareth, the son of Thu Sadad, succeeded,
who was called Al-Hareth al-Rayesh, i.e. " Al-Hareth of

Arabia. 113
the feathers or plume," because he enriched the people
of Yaman by the spoils he brought back, feathers by
metaphor denoting wealth. This is he who was styled
the first Tobaa.
16. Thu'l or Dhu'l Karnaim Assaab, the son of Al-
Rayesh, succeeded. He was that two-homed one men
tioned in Alkoran ; not Alexander of Macedon, as they
believe who follow the opinion of Ebn Abbas.
17. Thul or Dhu'l Manar Abrahah succeeded his
father Dhu'l-Karnain, so named because he first put
up beacons in the way, when he invaded an enemy's
country, as directing posts, at intervals on the road to
be retraced. Probably he was the first of the Hamyaritic kings
who resorted to such a practice ; for such, it is
presumed, were among the number of great works
performed by the Adites, the lost Arabians, if not cer
tainly for the direction of armies, for the guiding of
travellers.* 18. Afriks, or Afrlkus, the son of Abrahah, suc
ceeded, from whom Africa was named, as narrated by
Al-Jannabi, by Ahmed the son of Joseph, and by the
teaching of Ibn Ibdun ; and the Bar-Bar, the remains
of the people driven by Joshua out of Palestine, Egypt,
etc., were transported into those settlements they now
occupy. |
By this, I think, is intended the Bar-Bar, who were
driven out of Palestine by Joshua, and were subse-
* See note in " Excerpta ex Abulfeda," by Silvestre de Sacy.
t Pocock, "Spec. Hist. Arab." I

114 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
quently transported by Afriks, possibly and probably,
to the north coast of Africa ; and this event may have
caused his name to have been given to that continent,
or perhaps, in the first instance, to a small portion of
it, such as the Romans called "Africa Propria." It is
possible the old lost tribe of Bar may have preceded
the Bar-Bar in Africa, unless indeed they were one
and the same people, which, upon being driven out of
Southern Arabia, may have settled in Palestine. From
these may have come the Berbers in Northern Africa.
19. Thu'l-Athaar Amru, or Dhu'l-Adhaar Amru,
brother of Afriks, succeeded. He was surnamed "the lord
of Terrors, or of dreadful things," because a certain race
of monstrous men, or (as others say) of monkeys or of
satyrs, invaded Yaman, against which he (Thu'l Athaar
Amru) waged war. These being seen then for the first
time caused terror and dismay.
20. Sharhabil was of the posterity of Saksak, the
seventh king of Yaman, whom the Hamyarites set up
when Dhu'l-Adhaar was driven from the kingdom.
21. Al-Hodhad succeeded his father Sharhabil.
22. Balkis, a daughter of Hodhid, is reported to have
reigned twenty years, and the Arabs consider her to
have been that Queen of Saba who visited Solomon
and was married to him.
23. Nashar al-Neam, " the scatterer of benefits," so
called on account of his eminent liberality. With some
his name was Malek. He appears to have been
the son of Sharhabil. Malek, when he had lost his
army which he had led to the west, and which was

Arabia. 115
overwhelmed by the sand, caused a statue constructed
of brass to be erected ; on the breast of which he
took care to have these words engraved in antique
characters : — " There is no access behind me :
Nothing beyond. The Son of Sharhabil."
24. Shamar or Shamar Yaraash — that is, "Shamar
the Trembling" — so called from tremor which had
taken possession of him, succeeded Nashar, whose son
he is supposed to have been, but according to others
the son of Afriks. They say Samarkand derived its
name from him.
25. Abu Malek, the son of Shamar, succeeded his
father. 26. Amran, the son of Amar, of the posterity of
Kahlan, was the twenty-sixth king ; then the empire was
transferred from the descendants of Hamyar to the
posterity of his brother Kahlan. This was that Amran
the soothsayer.
27. Amru bin Amar succeeded his brother Amran
the soothsayer. He was surnamed Mazikia, "the rearer,"
because he tore in twain in the evening the garments
he had worn by day, disdaining to either wear them
again himself, or to permit that they should be put on
by others. 28. Al-Akran succeeded, who was the son of Abi-
malek. (If the same as Abu Malek (25) the kingdom
was restored to the line of Hamyar.)
29. Thu'l or Dhu'l Habshan, the son of Akran, sue-

116 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ceeded his father ; and this is he who, as they relate,
destroyed Tasm and Jadis.
The destruction of these two tribes has been narrated
before. 30. Tobbaa, who succeeded, was the son of Al-
Akran (Thu'l Habshan's brother).
31. Kalaikarb, or, according to Al-Jannabi and
Ahmed ibn Yusef, Molaik Yakrah, was the son of
Tobbaa. 32. Abu Karb Asaad, who was called Al-Awsat
Tobbaa, the middle Tobbaa, of whom mention is made
in Alkoran, succeeded. They relate that he flourished
seven hundred years before Mohammed, and was the first
who enclosed the Kaaba with a curtain. He intro
duced the ordeal by fire, which in doubtful matters they
consulted : him who pretended that which was false, it
(the fire) was accustomed to consume; him who spoke
truth, it left untouched. The Hamyarites were con
verted from the worship of idols to Judaism, and this
was the origin of Judaism among the Arabs of Yaman.
He was killed by his own relations.
33. Hassan succeeded his brother Tobbaa. He was
cut off in the midst of his days, with those who had
killed his father ; he himself was killed by a brother.
34. Amru, the son of Tobbaa, succeeded. He had the
surname of Thu'1-Awad, or " the lord of wood," because,.
suffering from an incurable disease, he could not move
without being carried in a chair.
35. Abd Kalal, the son of Thu'l- Awad, succeeded.
36. Tobbaa Hassan ; but, according to Abulfeda,

Arabia. 117
Tobbaa, the son of Hassan, the son of Kalaikarb, called
Tobbaa Alasaght, " Tobbaa the less " or younger (or
perhaps the youngest).
'37. Al-Hareth, the son of Amru, who embraced
Judaism. It is not stated that he was the son of that
Amru, surnamed "lord of the wood," and could hardly
have been the son of the Amru who tore up his clothes
(see No. 27).
38. Morthed, the son of Kalal, succeeded. After him
the empire of the Hamyarites was divided. Nevertheless
it is related that after him reigned the following : —
39. Wakiah, the son of Morthed.
40. Abrahah, the son of Al-Sabah, who was surnamed
Shaibat al-Hamed.
41. Sahban succeeded, according to Abulfeda, but in
his stead Al-Jannabi and Ahmed place Ibn Dakikan, who
was the possessor of that celebrated sword of Amru ibn
Maad Carb, called Samsamah or Samsam, which, when
afterwards it had come into the hands of the Khalif
Rashid and the emperor of the Greeks had sent cer
tain extraordinary or superior swords to him, he (the
Khalif), in the presence of the ambassadors, taking
Samsam in his hand, cut all the others in twain, as if
they had been cabbages, without the least vestige of
damage to the edge of Samsam.
42. Thu or Dhu Shanater, so called, writes Al-Firau
zabad, because he had a superfluous finger ; but Al-Jauhari
writes that Al-Shanater, as spoken by the Arabs of
Yaman, meant earrings or pendants, and hence the
surname of this king, whose name was Lakhtiah, A

1 1 8 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
most Impure man ; but I conjecture the shameful
character of the man is expressed in the surname
Shanater. 43. Thu or Dhu Nowas, so called from his long curl
ing hair, which hung down his back. With others his
name was Yusef. He threw all who refused to openly
profess Judaism into a kindled pit of fire (a burning
fiery furnace), and whence his name of Sahib al-Akhudud,
as if he was called " the lord of the pit." He flourished
seventy years before Mohammed.
44. Thu or Dhu Jadan ; that is, " endowed with a
pleasant voice." Abulfeda places him as the last king of
the Hamyarites ; their empire, according to him, had
lasted 2020, but according to Al-Jannabi and Ahmed,
beyond 3000 years.
The oppression of the Christians by Dhu Jadan
caused the king of the Ethiopians to invade Yaman
with all his forces. Dhu Jadan, reduced to extremities
by the Abyssinians, putting his horse to speed, rushed
into the sea and perished. Nevertheless, under him, Al-
Jannabi relates, the inhabitants of Najran embraced
Christianity. Yaman was governed by four Ethiopian kings in
succession. During the reign of the fourth, or at its
commencement, the government was restored to the
line of Hamyar.
49. -Saif Ibn Di Yazan, with the forces he had
sought from the Persian king Anusherwan, snatched
the kingdom of his ancestors out of the hands of the
Ethiopians ; yet he was himself killed by Ethiopians,

Arabia. 119
with whom he was on intimate or friendly terms (or
perhaps they were his slaves or house-servants).
After the death of Saif, no others ruled over Yaman
than those set over it by Kefra or the Persian king, and
instead of Saif, he substituted Maady Karb for his son
Ahmed ibn Yusef, who had died in Persia before the
forces had been obtained from Kefra. Maady Karb
being killed by the Ethiopians, the kingdom passed
entirely from the descendants of Saba (Abd Shems), and
praefects were appointed by the Persian king. The fifth
and last was Bazan, to whom the name of Mohammed
was given. The government of Yaman devolved to
the Mohammedans, a share of which Shahr, the son of
Bazan, accepted from Mohammed.*
Of the Joktanic Arabs in Hijaz.
The Dynasty of Jorham.
While Yaarab, the son of Joktan, or Kahtan, suc
ceeded his father and reigned in Yaman, Jorham, his
brother, founded a dynasty in Hijaz.
Kings of the Line of Jorham in Hijaz.
1. Jorham, son of Joktan.
2. Abd Yalik, son of Jorham.
3. Jorsham, son of Abd Yalik.
4. Abd al-Madan, (Abd'ol-Madan), son of Jorsham.
5. Nogailah, or Nokailah, or Nofailah, son of Abd al-
Modan. * Pocock's "Spec. Hist. Arabum."

120 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
6. Abd Almasih (Abd'ol-Masih), son of Nogailah.
7. Modad, son of Abd Almasih.
8. Amru, son of Modad.
9. Alhareth (al-Hareth), his brother.
10. Amru, son of Alhareth.
II. Bashar, his brother.
12. Modad, son of Amru (8), son of Modad (7) ; when
they relate Ismail married the daughter of Modad.
After the reigns of twelve kings, but of a period only
of ten descents from Joktan, the rule of Jorhamite
princes was brought to an end by the introduction of
another but kindred Semitic element, namely, Ismail,
the son of Abraham and Hagar, when the kingly rule
seems to have ceased, and a patriarchal government to
have been set up.
Of the Most-Arabs, or Instituted Arabs.
The instituted Arabs are the descendants of Ismail,
and so called because the Arabs say their father Ismail
by origin and language was not Arab, but Hebrew ;
that after he had contracted the relationship with the
Jorhamites, he adopted their names, dialect, and insti
tutions, and those which sprung from him grew, together
with the Jorhamites, into one nation. But there seems
to have been some difference of opinion among his
torians as to how the government of the country was
carried on, and by which of the two families. Some say
the Jorhamites were the princes for secular affairs, and
the descendants of Ismail were guardians of the

Arabia.

121

temple, and had charge of religious matters ; others say
Kidar, Ismail's son, was crowned by his mother's
brethren, and that the Jorhamites submitted to his rule,
and that the custody of the temple remained in the
hands of the Ismailites, until the days of Nabet, the
grandson of Kidar, and then reverted to the Jorham
ites ; but it would appear from Al-Jannabi, as quoted by
Dr. Pocock, that the Jorhamites were driven from their
country by the posterity of Ismail, and betook them
selves to Jahaniah, where, after varied fortunes, they
were overwhelmed by a deluge and were destroyed.
Jahaniah was that descendant of Hamyar who left
Yaman with his tribe, and settled on the sea-coast near
Jeddah. If this version be correct, and the Jorhamites
as a body were driven out, the Ismailites might be said
to have superseded them, rather than to have become
one nation with the Jorhamites.

Of the Ishmaelites.
What is said in Holy Scripture about Hagar and
Ishmael.
Hagar was Sarai's handmaid, and is called an
Egyptian ; she was given by Sarai to Abram, to be his
wife. When she fled from Sarai (which it is probable
was from Mamre), she was found in the wilderness on
the way to Shur, by a fountain of water. Hagar called
the spring or well Beer-lahai-roi ; It was situate be
tween Kadesh and Bered. She was ordered to call

122 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
her son, who was to be born, Ishmael. Ishmael was
born when Abram was eighty-six years of age. Abra
ham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same
day, the father being ninety-nine, and the son thirteen
years of age. After the birth of Isaac, Hagar and
Ishmael were sent away by the desire of Sarah, ap
parently from Gerah, and they wandered in the wilder
ness of Beer-sheba. The affecting narrative of Hagar's-
despair and Ishmael's cry for water, in Genesis xxi.,
cannot be retouched without loss. Ishmael afterwards
dwelt in the wilderness of Paran and became an archer,
and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
We are also informed that Ishmael had twelve sons ;
the first Nebajoth, and then " Kedar, and Adbeel, and
Mibsam, and Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa, Hadar,
and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah ; " and that
" they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that is before
Egypt, as thou goest towards Assyria.'' In Chronicles
Hadar Is called Hadad. Ishmael also had a daughter,,
"the sister of Nebajoth," called Mahalath in Genesis
xxviii., and Bashemath In Genesis xxxvi. There are
also two other events recorded Ishmael assisting his
brother Isaac to bury their father ; and his death at the
age of 137 years, and that he died in the presence of all
his brethren, as it had been predicted he should dwell in
the presence of all his brethren.
Promises of the Almighty concerning Ishmael.
(1.) To Hagar: "I will multiply thy seed ex
ceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude."

Arabia. 123
Renewed to Hagar. "For I will make of him a great
nation." (2.) To Abraham : " And as for Ishmael, I have
heard thee : Behold, I have blessed him, and will make
him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly ; twelve
princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great
nation." Renewed to Abraham ; Ishmael is to be of a great
nation, because he was Abraham's seed : " And also
of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation,
because he is thy seed."
What the Arabs say of Ismail and Hagar. *
The writers of descents relate that Mohammed was
descended from Ismail, the son of Ibrahim the friend
of God, whom Hagar, the handmaid of Sarah his wife,
bore unto him.
The most trustworthy opinion among Arab authors
is, that the name of Arab and of Arabia is derived from
Arabah, which is part of the region of Tehama, which
their father Ismail afterwards inhabited.
The wife Ismail took from the Jorhamites bore him
twelve sons, of which number was Kidar ; and some
assert that the crown and kingdom of the Jorhamites
were given to him by his mother's brothers, she being
the daughter of Modad, the last of the Jorhamite kings.
In " Excerpta ex Abulfeda," it is related that Ibra
him set out from Syria with Ismail and his mother,
and went with them to Mekka, and settled them in that
* Pocock's "Spec. Hist. Arabum."

124 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
part which is called HIjr (Mekka is evidently here used
for the whole country of Hijaz), and then returned to
Syria ; that the Jorhamites were settled at that time in
that region, and from them Ismail took a wife, by whom
he had twelve sons, one of whom was Kidar ; and that
both Hagar and Ismail died and were buried at Hijr.
The main difference in the accounts of Hagar and
Ismail given respectively by Holy Scripture and by Arab
history is that with regard to Ismail's wife. In Holy
Scripture we are informed his mother took a wife out of
the land of Egypt ; and the Arabs say he married a
daughter of Modad, the last Jorhamite prince and ruler.
If the accounts cannot be reconciled, then I say at once
the former must be accepted, and we must admit some
error in the Arabian account — not a very great one, con
sidering it relates to events which happened nearly two
thousand years before the Christian era — and that the
connection of Ismail with the Jorhamites, and the ad*
mittance of his descendants as instituted Arabs, must
have had some other origin.
A second marriage has been suggested. A Jewish
tradition mentions that Ishmael did contract a second
marriage ; that Abraham, his father, visited his son at
least twice ; that Ishmael's first wife, during her husband's
absence, did not receive Abraham dutifully, or even with
hospitality, but that on a subsequent visit to his son
Ishmael he was well pleased with his second wife. There
is just an inference in Scripture which might support,
but not prove, a second marriage ; it is this : Mahalath
or Bashemath is not simply described as the daughter of

Arabia.

125

Ishmael, but as being also the sister to Nebajoth, as if
she were own sister to Nebajoth but not full sister in
blood to the other sons of Ishmael. But the Arab
historians do not speak of a second marriage : they say
he had twelve sons by his wife whom he took from the
Jorhamites, and that one of these, from whom especially
the line of descent is traced, was Kidar. There can be
no doubt they refer to the same family as is recorded
in Scripture; for it is not very probable that Ismail
should have had two families of twelve sons in each, and
that there should have also been a Kidar in each. Of
course, it is possible Nebajoth and his sister may have
been children of a first wife, whom his mother took from
Egypt, and that the other eleven may have been by a
subsequent wife.
There are three things to be considered in attempting
to reconcile the two accounts :
1st. Whether it is intended that Hagar, and after
wards the wife she took for her son, were by birth
and blood descendants of Misraim or Miser, the son
of Ham ; or whether the former is called an Egyptian
in the same sense as was Moses by the daughters of
Reuel, and as Jacob before him was styled a Syrian,
because one had come out of Egypt and the other
had lived in Syria.
2nd. Similarly, whether the expression, she (Hagar)
" took him (Ishmael) a wife out of the land of Egypt,"
might not refer to the land of her own kindred or nation,
as, in the event recorded in Genesis xxiv. 4, to which
attention is drawn by a marginal reference, where Abra-

126 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ham says to his steward, Eliezer of Damascus, " But thou
shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take
a wife unto my son Isaac."
3rd. Whether the Land of Miser or of Misraim, trans
lated in our authorized version of the Scriptures as
Egypt, did not at some period in history include and
embrace in its description a country of wider extent,
and outside the limits of that known subsequently
as Egypt. If such were the case, as a matter of
course Mezrith, i.e. a woman of the land of Miser or
Mitzraim, in our version Misraim, rendered as with
regard to Hagar " an Egyptian," might be used to
express any woman of or from such a country of a
wider extent than that now known as Egypt.
Eastern geographers of a. former period made Arabia
Petrasa belong partly to Egypt (i.e., I presume, the Land
of Miser), and partly to Es Sham or Syria ; and when
Gedor, which would appear to have been a part of the
inheritance of Judah, was captured by the sons of
Simeon, we are informed it was a rich pasture land ;
" for they of Ham had dwelt there of old."
Although there may not be any decided account,
fixing the exact limits to the Land of Miser, Ham's son,
i.e. to the country or regions which in old time were
for a time possessed by Miser's actual descendants, or,
more widely, by the posterity of Ham, there are
certain passages which show that a very considerable
amount of country was in old time occupied by Ham's
posterity, which afterwards came into possession of
certain Semitic families, and which eventually became
part of the peninsula of the Arabs.

Arabia. 127
To give a few examples. We find from the Book of
Deuteronomy that the people who occupied the country
which was afterwards given as a possession to the
Ammonites, the descendants of Lot, were called " Zam-
zummins," and in Genesis xiv. they are spoken of as " the
Zuzims in Ham," giants who were destroyed by the
Lord before the children of Ammon to whom the latter
succeeded. In like manner were the Horims or Horites
dispossessed of their land, and destroyed to make room
for the children of Esau, who succeeded them. These
Horites dwelt in Mount Seir, and occupied the country
as far as to " El-paran, which is by the wilderness "
(Genesis xiv. 6). And the Enims were formerly the
inhabitants of Moab, the land afterwards given to the
children of Moab, the descendants of Lot. And it
is quite possible that the land occupied at one time
by these various families of Ham, some of whom may
have been even of the posterity of Miser, may have
gone for a long period under the name of the Land of
Ham, or the Land of Miser. As to this, we speak even
now of the Land of Canaan, formerly possessed by the
Canaanites, but which was given to, and was actually
possessed by, the children of Israel for many generations.
Another instance of calling a person after the former
name of a country or of the former inhabitants, in
stead of by the name of her own people and of the
name of the country then in use, is to be found when
Miriam and Aaron wickedly spoke against Moses,
charging him with having married an Ethiopian woman,
or, as in the margin, a Cushite — at all events, I think,

128 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
charging him with folly or wickedness in marrying
a woman of a forbidden country ; for they could not
have been ignorant of the fact that, as a Midianite,
she was by blood of Semitic descent from Abraham,*
but I think they chose rather to stigmatize her by
calling her by the name of the people who had in old
time occupied the land.
We have also heard, from the short account of the
Amalekites, that as they passed up north from the
neighbourhood of Sanaa, they destroyed those people
who then occupied Mekka ; and I think it possible
that, in old time, the country from Yaman northwards
up the coast of the Red Sea, to what is now known as
Egypt, Including Arabia Petraea, was considered to be
the Land of Miser, and was not called Arabia until after
Semitic families passed up northwards and had driven
out the children of Ham, Cushites or Misraim, or
perhaps both. We also learn from history that the
Amalekites were in turn driven from Mekka and the
neighbourhood ; and that part settled in Syria, and part
went into Egypt and founded the dynasty known under
the name of Pharaoh. It is obvious that if such portion
of the country was called the Land of Miser, and if
Hagar and the wife she took for her son Ishmael were
natives of any part of this country, they may have been
called of Miser or Egypt, and yet have been by blood of
Semitic or Arab race.
The name of Sarah's handmaid, Hagar as spelt in
* The Midianites, descendants from Midian, a son of Abraham and
Keturah.

Arabia. 129
English, and usually pronounced with a hard G, is in
Arabic ^ys*.xJb i.e. Hajr or Hajar, and spelled with
their second or soft H and J (jeem), very soft with the
Arabians, especially so among the Badaween of the
desert, by whom the purest Arabic is spoken ; but, on
the other hand, the Arabic J (jeem), is pronounced hard
in Egypt. This name Hagar in our version of the Scriptures,
but Hajar in Arabic, with a soft H and soft J, may
possibly give some clue to her country and nationality,
especially if the Arabic more nearly represents the
original Semitic tongue or primitive Hebrew than does
the Hebrew of a later period known to us. Hajar in
the Arabic means separation, desertion of country, of
friends, absence ; the verb means to leave, to abandon
or desert, friends or country. Hijrah has the same
signification, departure from one's country. " Al hijrah,"
i.e. of Mohammed, is the departure of Mohammed from
his native country, the separation from his friends —
not the flight of Mohammed, as it is usually called,
giving, as I believe, to the words Hijrah and Hajar an
entirely different and false meaning. The word as
written Agar in the New Testament, if the G be
pronounced soft as in "gem," would appear to me
to be the correct pronunciation.
On the other hand, the names of the country Hijaz,
and of that district of It (Hejr) where It is related Hagar
and Ismail were settled, are both spelled in Arabic with
the first H, which is hard, guttural, and always aspirated,

130 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
respectively thus : '.Is: (Hijaz) and ,& (Hejr), and
both probably derived from the J&: (Hjar), a stone.
Alhijaz or Hijaz is applied to Arabia Petraea, or to
the country which went under that name, and to the
whole of the country between Yaman and Egypt, to
Mekka itself as its centre, as likewise Mekka itself,
seems often to be used to express the country Hijaz.
The name I consider to have been given from the rocky
nature of the country, and not, as it has been supposed
by some, to denote an intervening region between
Tehama and Najd. In the case of Hagar's name there
may have been a twofold meaning — first, separation ;
and, secondly, separation from her native, stony home.
The region of Hejr, where it is stated Hagar and
Ismail settled, is quite a landmark or beacon In history.
It is described as lying between Hijaz and Syria (here
Mekkah might be placed, I think, for Hijaz). Mr.
Burckhardt says it is seven days' journey to the north of
Madina, near the region of Khaibar, on the borders of
Kayseem (part of the Najd). It is on the route from
Yaman, Mekka, and Madina to Syria, to Egypt, and
to Assyria ; the point, too, where the routes to Najd, the
Euphrates, and the ancient Arab kingdom and settle
ments in Erack diverge from the Syrian route. At
Hejr the ancient tribe of Thamud was settled, and
here it is said their houses, cut out of the rock, are
still to be seen.
Through Hejr probably passed any remains of those
peoples which the Amalekites destroyed when they had

Arabia. 131
left Sanaa ; through Hejr doubtless passed the Amalek
ites themselves on their way to Syria and Egypt from
Mekka, or when they were in turn expelled from thence
by the Jorhamites ; and at Hejr would have been the
diverging point of that constant flow of emigration of
Arab tribes and families from Yaman to the more
northern parts of the peninsula of the Arabs, to Syria,
to Erack, and to the Euphrates.
To Hejr also came Hajar and Ismail, when driven
from Abraham's tent, so the Arabs say.
Close to Hejr is another important district, called
Khaibar, where, and at Yatribah (Madina) and in other
places of Hijaz, dwelt a certain part of the Amale-
kite family — so states the Arab historian Abulfeda ;
and another Arab author mentioned in " Excerpta ex
Abulfeda" * states that it was these Amalekites in Hijaz
upon whom the Israelites made war by command of
Moses (or Samuel, as substituted in the margin). Scrip
ture says Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah
to Shur. Scripture also states that the people of
Ishmael dwelt from Havilah to Shur ; whether that
includes more than his own sons and their families, I
cannot say. Wherever this district may be, it is evident
that the place where Saul smote the Amalekites was the
same as that possessed by the families of Ishmael. It
is not recorded how long Saul was absent on his ex
pedition against the Amalekites, nor that he smote them
only at one particular place, or on one day only. Arab
history says the Amalekites dwelt partly in Syria, in
* By Silveslre de Sacy.

132 Gleanings from the Desei't of Arabia.
Yatribah, in Khaibar, and other adjacent regions, and
that these latter were those who were smitten by the
Israelites by command, as by marginal reference, "not
of Moses, but of Samuel."
Arab historians state that Ismail formed an alliance
with the Jorhamites, who lived in Hijaz, and became
one nation with them, or probably superseded them ;
and Abulfeda says Ismail went to Mekka and to that
part which is called Hejr, and that both he and his
mother were buried at Hejr.
Can Hejr or Khaibar be identified with Havilah ?
If Hejr, Khaibar, or the neighbouring regions in
Hijaz be the Havilah of Scripture, the Arabian history
would be very accurate in detail and substance, because
those districts up to the borders of modern Egypt, which
in early days may have been called the Land of Miser,
were possessed by the Amalekites, and along that route
they passed to Egypt, and it would define the territory
afterwards held by Ishmaelites from Havilah to Shur.
Now, after the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael, he
being then thirteen years of age, they are described as
wandering in the wilderness of Beer-sheba — probably the
same district as that to which Hagar had formerly gone
when she fled from Sarah. We next hear of Ishmael
dwelling in the wilderness of Paran, which I think would
not have been the way to Egypt ; and the next subse
quent event recorded is that his mother took him a wife
out of the land of Egypt. If by the marginal reference
to Genesis xxiv. 4 we are to understand "her own
country and her kindred" and if Hagar has been called

Arabia. , 133
an Egyptian, not on account of her blood, but in the
sense in which Jacob was called a Syrian and Moses an
Egyptian, and if her kindred were in fact Arab by blood,
and the Land of Miser included more than modern
Egypt, then, in passing with her son from Beer-sheba
to Paran, Hagar might be going to her kindred and the
Land of Miser at the same time.
Paran, from the account of it in Deuteronomy,
would appear to be east of the Sinai peninsula, the
plain or open country through which the route from
Madina and Hejr would pass to Palestine and Egypt,
as does the Haj route to Syria at the present time.
Hagar, in Genesis xvi. and xxi. 9, is called an
Egyptian, but in the Hebrew text Mitsrith or Mezrith,
i.e. a woman of the Land of Miser. We are apt to assume
that Egypt was the same then as now known to us, with
out considering whether the Land of Miser was not
aforetime of much wider extent.
If Hagar has been called Mitsrith, an Egyptian
woman, and the woman she took for her son's wife was
said to be of the land of Egypt, on the ground that their
country had been in old times part of the Land of Miser
both Hagar and Ishmael's wife may have been of
Semitic, and even of the ancient Arabian stock ; like
wise may they have been so if both had actually come
out of Egypt as it is known to us now, if that part
occupied by the Pharaohs in the time of Abraham were
held by a Semitic, and perhaps even Arab, people.
The account in Genesis xxi. 21, that Ishmael dwelt
in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took him a

1 34 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
wife out of the land of Egypt — Mitzraim, or the Land of
Miser — would hardly indicate that they went down into
Egypt as it is known to us ; for in journeying to Paran
they would be going away from modern Egypt, Paran
apparently being east of Mount Seir and east of Jordan
— " This side Jordan" as Moses wrote when east of
Jordan, for the Israelites had not crossed that river to
the west.
Paran, indeed, would seem to be the northern part
of the desert, which is continued south to Hejr, the
northern part of Hijaz, that country of the Jorhamite
Arabs to which the Arabs say Hagar and Ismail went,
and a daughter of which people they say Ismail
married. With regard to the Hagarites or Hagarenes, which
people are also mentioned in Holy Scripture, and by
some are supposed to have been descendants of Hagar
by a second or subsequent marriage with an Arab (for
which assumption I know no grounds), I think with
more reason they might be considered as the people
or peoples of Hijaz, who may have been driven out and
dispersed by the successive migrations of Arabs from
the south, the dispersed of the ancient Thamud, the
remnant of the peoples destroyed at Mekka by the
Amalekites after they had left or had been driven
from Yaman, a portion of the Amalekites themselves
driven out by the Jorhamites, and even the last named,
according to one version, driven out by the descendants
of Ismail from Hijaz : it probably may have been the

Arabia. 135
name given to or assumed by the remnants of all these
Arab families. Mention is made of the Hagarites in
Scripture in the days of Saul, king of Israel, and they
were then associated with the Ishmaelites, but, I think,
are not to be identified with them. The Israelitish
tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasses
attacked them : " They made war with the Hagarites.
with Jetur, and Nephish, and Nodab" — implying, I
think, a distinction between the Hagarites and Jetur,
Nephish and Nodab, and not identity ; the former two
names being those of two sons of Ishmael. In the
eighty-third Psalm, in which reference is made to both
Ishmaelites and Hagarenes, these two peoples or
families are not even coupled ; the text being, " The
tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites ; of Moab,
and the Hagarenes."
I have a strong feeling that the name of the whole
country Hijaz, from Yaman to Egypt, was probably
derived from Hijar, "stones," or Hajar, "a stone," and
that the term Hagarites or Hagarenes expresses the
amalgamated remnants of peoples who had occupied
Hijaz or some portion of that country reaching from
Yaman to Syria and to Egypt, including the Mount Sinai
peninsula, at different periods before and up to the time
of the Ishmaelites, scattered about in various districts of
the desert. Whether those described in some parts of
Scripture as mingled people of the desert are the same,
I cannot say, but it is not improbable, and I have a
strong Impression that certain traces which have been
found in the northern part of Hijaz, and which have

136 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
been ascribed to the Israelites or Egyptians, are really
those of the ancient Thamud, and perhaps other lost
Arabs. Among the Tuarick in the Sahara of Africa, it
is said there was a distinct people, called Hagara,
bearing some resemblance to Arabs in appearance and
customs. A traveller of the name of Horneman, who
was employed by the African Exploration Society,
about the end of the last century, met some of this
people in Fezzan, to which place, it would appear, they
had gone as itinerant merchants. These may trace
their origin from the Hagarenes.
There were two princes of the name of Modad in
the line of Jorham, perhaps named in memory of
Almodad, an ancestor, one of the sons of Joktan
mentioned in Scripture ; the first Modad was eighth
in descent from Eber, the common ancestor of Jorham
and of Ismail, and the second Modad, the twelfth
and last prince of the house of Jorham, was the
grandson of the former Jorham, and therefore only
tenth In descent from Eber, from whom Ismail was
seventh, and it has struck me that it may have been
a daughter of the former Modad who was married
to Ismail, not the daughter of the grandson, as Is
generally assumed.
In either case, the marriage of Ismail with a
daughter of the ruling family would secure for Hagar
and her son a favourable reception at Hejr, if the
marriage took place when they were still in Paran, and
a good position in either case at Hejr ; and, falling male
issue to the last prince of the Jorhamites, or from some

Arabia. 137
political cause, a son of Ismail and a daughter of the
house of Jorham would have a very strong claim to
succeed. Some authors say that his maternal uncle crowned
Kidar, the son of Ismail, and placed him on the throne.
Had Ismail married a daughter of the second
Modad, and she had a brother or brothers, by right the
succession would be to one of them, and it is hardly
probable, except from some extraordinary political
cause, that a direct male heir to a throne should propose
the election, and crown the son of a sister ; but, failing
male issue of the second Modad, if Ismail had married
the daughter of the first Modad, the grandfather,
possibly Kidar his son was the heir, or, if there were
other claimants, it is quite consistent that the brother of
Ismail's wife and great-uncle to the last Modad should
put forward or assert the claim of his sister's son.
Such, I think, may have been the events which
caused the connection of Ismail with the house of
Jorham, which led to the union of the two families in
the first instance, and subsequently to the precedence of
the former, if not the extinction of the Jorhamites.
Kidar, from whom the Arabs trace their descent, and
who they say succeeded the last Modad, was Ismail's
second son ; and it is from him, not the other sons of
Ismail, that the Arabs generally, and especially those
of the great desert tribes, have their origin ; and if this
family has not altogether superseded the other Arab
families, it has certainly influenced all other branches of
the Arab race.

138 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
It will not be out of place here to draw attention to
the fact that Ishmael is called a son of Abraham, and
twice at least in conjunction with Isaac : " The sons
of Abraham, Isaac and Ishmael," and "his sons, Isaac
and Ishmael, buried him ; '' whereas the children born
to Abraham by Keturah are called children of Keturah
in Genesis, and sons of Keturah in Chronicles ; and
to remember the prophecies concerning Ishmael, for
he had a special blessing from the Almighty, namely,
that he should be a great nation and numerous. But,
without giving other conjectures as to how the accounts
giving by Arab historians of Ismail's marriage may be
reconciled with that given in Holy Scripture, we may
well accept the fact that a union or connection between
Ismail and the house of Jorham did take place, and
that from Kidar, his son, through Adnan the Arabs trace
their descent ; that during the period which elapsed
between' Kidar and Adnan, or between the connection of
Ismail with the Jorhamites, the other sons of Ismail
would seem to have dispersed and taken up ground for
themselves ; for we read in Holy Scripture of Nebajoth
and Jetur and Nephish being in more northern districts,
on the confines of Syria, Moab, and Palestine, and from
Arab history we learn that the Jorhamites were driven
out from Hejr and their former country, to the sea-shore
at Jeddah, where, after varied fortune, they perished,
and thus, apparently, left the country at one time held
by the Jorhamites entirely to the descendants of Kidar.

Arabia. 139
The Line of Descent from Kidar, Son of
Ismail, to Adnan.
Kidar, his son Hamal, then Nabt or Nabet, then
Salaman the son of Nabet, then Al-Yas the son of
Al-Hamaisa, then Odad the son of Al-Yas, then Od,
Ad, or Oddo, the son of Odad, then Adnan the son of
Oddo. Some authors place Nabet as the son of Kidar,
and others as the son of Ismail himself, and this is
why the Arabs usually trace descents up to Adnan.
Line of Descent from Adnan.
Adnan had two sons, Akk and Maad. Maad had
two sons, Kodaah and Nazar. Nazar had four sons :.
1. Modar ; 2. Aiyad ; 3. Rablah ; 4. Armar. Although
shown as the third, it is possible that Rabiah was the
fourth, which is, I think, Indicated by his name.
Aiyad was born before Modar, but from Modar came
Mohammed in direct descent. Aiyad was the father of
all the tribes of the Aiyadites, of the posterity of Maad
(which Maad was the grandfather of Aiyad). Aiyad,
with his family, left his country, Hijaz, and settled on
the borders of Erack. From the Aiyadites of the line of
Maad came two distinguished men — Kaad, whose extreme
hospitality became a proverb, as " More bountiful than
Kaad," and Koss, equally celebrated for his eloquence,
which was also proverbial — " More eloquent than Koss."
Rabiah, a third son of Nazar, was surnamed
l^J^ <k^j (Rabiah al-faras), i.e. "Rabiah of the

140 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Horses," because he obtained the horses from his
ancestors by hereditary law.
To Rabiah were born Asad and Dobiyah. From
Asad was Jadailah, and from his descendants came
Wayel, from whom Bekr and Taglah ; from the Taglah
came Kolaib, king of Bani Wayel, whom a certain
Jassus of Bani Shaiban from Bekr killed. The death of
Kolaib was the cause of a prolonged war among the
Wayel, Bekr, and Taglah tribes.
Such complications arise among tribes and families
in the desert at the present time, containing so many
issues, that they are not easily understood by foreigners,
if not altogether inexplicable to them.
From Bekr came Banu Shaiban, from whom Morrah,
whose son Jassus was he who killed Kolaib.
From Bekr were Banu Hanifah, from whom after
wards came the notorious false prophet, Mosailemah.
Kolaib, whose name was Wayel, but called some
times Kolaib ibn Rabiah, was from Taglah, and both
Taglah and Bekr came from Wayel, who was from
Jadailah, the son of Asad. This Wayel, or Kolaib, is
also described as King Kolaib ; he ruled over a people
described as Bani Maad (probably some descendants
from Maad, the son of Adnan, other than those which
have been specially enumerated, and he may also
have been the Shaykh of the Wayel tribe). Kolaib is
classed among the number of several Arabian kings who
seemed to have ruled over other people or districts than
their own particular tribes or families. He appears to
have been a man of a haughty disposition, and to have

Arabia. 141
been overbearing in exacting exclusive rights and privi
leges. It is recorded of him that he would not permit
wild game to be hunted in districts in his neighbour
hood, nor suffer other camels to be led to water together
with his own, nor allow any one to approach his fire.
The death of Kolaib, who was killed by Jassus, which
gave rise to the feuds between the Wayel, Bekr, and
Taglah tribes, was brought about by the following inci
dent : — Kolaib, seeing a camel feeding in a place which
he had forbidden to others, shot at her and wounded
her in the udder with the arrow. The camel, which
was called Sarab, belonged to a certain lady named
Basus, who was a friend of Jassus, and his guest at the
time. Mohalhel ibn Rabiah, who was Kolaib's brother, and
would seem to have also been one of the number of
separate Arabian kings, collected the families of Taglah,
and carried on war against the Bekr tribes, in which he
avenged the death of his brother.
Mohalhel slew Bohair, the son of Hareth, of the
same tribe as Jassus, i.e. of Banu Shaiban from Bekr —
Bohair was probably some near relation of Jassus — appa
rently after a long interval of time, saying, " Die, and
be thou the expiation for the shoe latchet of Kalaib ! "
Hareth, the father of Bohair, thus laments the death
of his son, and excuses himself from having merited
such vengeance from the hands of the Taglah, by stating
that he had not been of the number of those who
had "pronounced judgment against" the chief men
of Taglah, in these words : " From what time my

142 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
hand held the reins of Noama,* my beard has become
grey, and my own relations do not now recognize me.
I was not (God is my witness) of that number who
joined in judgment against them (the Taglah) ; yet,
nevertheless, I am consumed by their rage until this
time." Notable among the sons of Asad (the son of Rabiah
al-Faras) was £%!»£ (Anazah), from whom Banu
Anazah, who were the inhabitants of Khaibar. From
the Anazah were the two tanners, whose misfortune,
mysterious disappearance, and unknown end gave rise
to the following proverb, " I will not return to thee until
the two tanners return ; " and again, " When the Anazah
tanner returns."
The Anazah, then and at the present time, are a great
people, and will be more fully discussed in another
place. From Dobiyah, the other son of Rabiah al-faras,
the poet Matalammat was descended.
The following tribes also had their origin from
Rabiah al-faras : — Nemr, Lahaim, Ajal, and Banu Abdi'l
Kais ; Sadus, Al-Lahazem.
The posterity of Armar, the fourth son of Nazar,
either during his lifetime or after it had multiplied,
migrated to Yaman, became naturalized, and was after
wards reckoned as Arabs of Yaman.
Al-Yas and Kais Ailan were two sons of Modar, the
second son of Nazar ; from Al-Yas, in direct descent,
came Ferh, the founder of the Koreish tribe, and direct
* The name of his mare.

Arabia. 143
ancestor of Mohammed. Kais Ailan was also called
Al-Nas, as in the proverb, " If Al-Nas loses, Al-Yas
repays." Many tribes were descended from Kais Ailan : Ha-
wazen, Banu Kaleb, from whom came the lords or
princes of Haleb (Aleppo), of which Saleh ibn Merder
was the first ; Okaib, which formerly ruled at Musal
likewise Banu Amer, Saafaah, and Khafajah, which
tribes held the empire of Erack from an ancient period ;
Bakr, Banu Helal and Thakif, which last inhabited the
district called Al-Yayef (some assert that Thakif was
from the Aiyadites, and others state that this people
were remains of the ancient Thamud, one of the ancient
or lost Arabian tribes) ; also Banu Namair, and Bahelah,
and Mazen, and Gatfan, and Banu Abas. Antarah, a
hero whose courage is an oft-repeated theme among
the Arabs, was of Banu Abas.
From Gatfan came Asjad and Asjaamites, Salini
and Banu Dhobyan, from whom Fazarah and Banu
Fazarah, and from the Fazarah the noble Hesn, whose
notable generosity has been handed down in poetry —
" As when thou shalt see him to whom thou approachest (seeking aid)
Springing forward with gladness, as if he had received from thee what
thou seekest from him."
Between the Dhobyan and Abas families was that
celebrated war, which raged for forty years, called
" Dahes and Gabraah " after two horses which were the
cause of the quarrel. The following is the account of
this celebrated horse race and the origin of the war : —
The Dhobyan tribe was from the Gatfan, who were

144 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
descended from Kais Ailan, the son of Modar, and
brother of Al-Yas. Modar, be it remembered, was
brother to Rabiah al-Faras, and the direct ancestor of
Mohammed. From the Dhobyan came the Fazarah
tribe, of which was Hesn, celebrated for his generosity,
and a certain Hadif, the man who made the match
with King Kais.
King Kais was the son of Zohair ibn Jadalmah, of
the Abas tribe, a family which was also from Kais
Ailan. King Kais, having punished his enemies and revenged
the death of ancestors in Hira, returned to or went into
Hijaz ; and disputed with the Koraish regarding their
claim to supremacy and nobility. He, being of the
Abas family, from Al-Nas, otherwise Kais Ailan, was
equally descended from Modar, as was the Fehr or
Koraish tribe through Al-Yas.
King Kais afterwards visited the Fazarah tribe, and
settled among the sons of Bedr, residing with a certain
Hadif, a son of Bedr. He was the owner of a horse
called Dahes, and ¦ a mare named Gabraah, which he
obtained in Hijaz; but some say he bred, and did not,
buy, the mare Gabraah, and that she was the daughter
of his horse Dahes. Hadif wished to make a match
between his two mares, Khattara and Hansa, and
Dahes and Gabraah. At first King Kais declined, as
he disliked contests of that kind, believing that no good
was to be derived therefrom ; but Hadif would not take
a refusal, and eventually a race was decided upon. The
two mares of Hadif were to run against Dahes and

Arabia. 145
Gabraah for one hundred camels, over a course of the dis
tance of one hundred galwas — that is, one hundred bow
shots in length : literally one hundred times the extreme
distance which an arrow could be shot from a bow — at
a place called Dhatala Fadus. The horse Dahes took
and held a commanding lead, and the eyes of all were
fixed on him. But Hadif had appointed certain men
hi ambush, who were instructed to drive Dahes back, or
out of the course, should he show in front. These men,
therefore, rushed at Dahes, and struck him on the face,
by which means he was driven back. Gabraah, taking
up the running, won the race.
Hadif, denying that he had any knowledge of the
occurrence, contended that his mares had won the race ;
whence arose the dispute between the sons of Bedr and
the Abas family, which resulted in a war between the
Dhobyan tribe and the Abas, lasting forty years.
This celebrated race took place after the commence
ment of the Christian era, and King Kais subsequently
embraced the Christian religion.
From Kais Ailan come also Adwan and the Adwan-
ites, who, it is said, also inhabited the region Al-Tayef.
From Modar came Al-Yas, from whom Madrekah,
from whom Khozaimah, from whom Kenanah, from
whom Al-Nadr, from whom Malek, from whom Ferh,
surnamed Koraish, from which tribe came Mohammed
in the following line of descent : — Galeb, Lowa, Kaab,
Morrah, Keldb, Kosa, Abd Menaf, Hashm, Abd al-
Motalleb, Abd Allah, Mohammed. Animah, the mother
L

146 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of Mohammed, was of the Koraish tribe, having been a
daughter of a family collateral with Mohammed's, through
Zahrah from Kelab ; and Khadijah, the first wife of
Mohammed, was also of the Koraish, and of the col
lateral family through Abd al-Uzza from Kosa, one
generation nearer in descent to Mohammed than Kelab..
History teaches that the peninsula of the Arabs
has been inhabited, almost since the Flood, by a suc
cession of Semitic families ; that upon the fall of some
and the destruction and dispersion of others, the two
dynasties of Joktanic Arabs, the one in Yaman and
the other in Hijaz, founded by two of the sons of Joktan,
rose to greater power. Subsequently the Ismailites,
another Semitic family from Abraham, of collateral
descent with the Joktanic Arabs from Eber, their
common ancestor, appeared, before whom one of the
two kingdoms of Joktanic Arabs, that of the Jorhamites
In Hijaz, speedily declined ; and I am inclined to think
this portion of the Joktanic passed away before the
descendants of Ismail — that they were superseded
rather than amalgamated. The other kingdom, that of
the Hamyarites, continued with only very slight inter
ruption until the time of Mohammed, when that also
gave way before the influence of the prevailing de
scendants of Ismail ; and when the Arabian conquests
commenced, after the death of Mohammed, the amalga
mation of the Joktanic with the Ismailitish Arabs, if
only partial before in many parts of the whole country,
now became general and complete. For although, pre-

Arabia. 147
vious to this and from an early period, by a reflux of
population of both Joktanic and Ismailitic Arabs from
Yaman and Hijaz, every part of the peninsula of the
Arabs had been occupied by Arabs — the desert between
Syria and the Euphrates by the tribes of Badaween ;
the banks of that river by colonies of Arabs more or
less settled, which had penetrated to the Tigris and to
Diarbekr in the north — and although there had been
in a few cases an interchange of families In Yaman and
Hijaz (some tribes from Yaman had settled in Hijaz
and another from Hijaz had gone to Yaman and be
come reckoned among the Hamyarites), yet up to the
time of Mohammed the kingdom of Hamyar was a
very distinct one, and probably the people of Yaman
were as essentially Joktanic as those of Hijaz were
Ismailitic ; and considering that the families and tribes
which had migrated to the districts bordering upon
Syria and Erack and beyond the Euphrates were
from both Hijaz and Yaman, and of both Ismailitic
and Hamyaritic origin, it is probable that the general
fusion or amalgamation which commenced in those
distant provinces, was more general there than in the
parent provinces Yaman and Hijaz — at all events,
until the time of Mohammed — and had its final consum
mation when the Arab kingdoms of Ghassan, on the
borders of Damascus, and of Hira in Erack, were swept
away by Kalib ibn Walid and Omar the Khalif.
Thus, besides many other migrations which are not
mentioned, we have been informed by history of the
following : —

148 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
From Yaman to Erack was the Daus tribe from
Al-Azd tribe, the Lakham from Amru the son of
Saba, and the Ayadites of the ancient Tay : and from
Hijaz proceeded Aiyad, the second son of Nazar, the
grandson of Adnan, and settled with his family within
the borders of Erack ; Banu Amer, the Soafaah, and
Khafajah tribes, and the Okail, which tribe settled at
Mosul, and other settlements under a Bekr, a Modar,
and Rabiah, after whom at the present time the districts
are still called, as for instance Diarbekr.
From Yaman to Syria migrated Banu Kalb, Banu
Salih, part of the tribe Al-Azd, and called Ghassan,
and Banu Amalah ; and from the Kais Ailan of Hijaz,
the Banu Kaleb, who were the princes of Aleppo.
The Ghassan, having dispersed the old tribe at Salih,
founded an Arab kingdom, extending to Damascus,
which lasted for several centuries — according to Abul
feda, 616 years. Several of these kings were named or
called Hareth, the same as spoken of in the New
Testament under the name of Aretas. The Ghassan
were converted to Christianity — probably received
teaching from St. Paul himself.
The kingdom of Hira, in Erack or Chaldaea, was
also a stronghold of the Christian faith, and was sought
as an asylum by such Arabs as became Christians.
Thus on the decline of the Hamyarite kingdom in
Yaman, and by the prevailing influence of the Ismailitish
Arabs over the whole peninsula, were the premises re
specting Ismail, namely, that he should be a numerous
people and a great nation, in a marked manner fulfilled.

Arabia. 149
Two Classes of Arabs, Badaween and
Settled Arabs.
From a very early period the Arabs have been divided
into two general classes : the Badaween, dwellers in the
desert ; and the townsmen, settled inhabitants. Whether
these two states of society existed originally at the same
time I cannot say, but I expect the Badaween was
a greatly increased element after the Ismailites had
become established. The settled inhabitants dwelt
in towns and villages, sowed the land, cultivated palm-
trees, tended cattle, and engaged in foreign trade. The
Badaween lived in tents in the deserts, changing the
districts as their flocks and herds consumed the pasture
and as water failed. Many of them betook themselves
to the confines of Syria and Erack in winter, and again
spread over the desert on the first return of spring.
The Religion of the Arabs.
There can be no doubt that the Arabs very soon
lapsed into idolatry. The destruction of the ancient
tribes of Ad and Thamud is assigned by their historians
to the fact that they forgot the one true God, Jehovah,
and refused to return to His worship when warned to do
so by the prophets Hud and Salah. Afterwards the
Hamyarites worshipped the sun ; but separate tribes
had their peculiar stars, which they worshipped or held
in veneration. Thus Canopus was the star of the ancient
Tay.

150 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Fresh light was doubtless brought in by Ismail.
Judaism was probably known at an early date ; it made
great progress among the Hamyarites at a later period.
A certain author mentioned in " Excerpta ex Abulfeda "
says that the Israelites who defeated the Amalekites in
the time of Samuel, having been denounced as rebellious
for saving the life of the Amalekite king, left the king
dom of Israel, and returned to Khaibar, Yatribah, and
to other parts of Hijaz, to those districts where they had
destroyed the Amalekites ; others say that Jews began
to settle in Arabia after the capture of Jerusalem ; but, as
the pious Arab author has said, " God knows the truth."
It is probable, however, that Jews were to be found
among the Arabs before the Babylonian captivity. We
read in Jeremiah that " the Jews that were in Moab, and
among the Ammonites, and in Edom, and that were in
all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left
a remnant of Judah . . . even all the Jews returned out
of all the places whither they were driven, and came to
the land of Judah."
Christianity made very considerable progress among
the Arabs. It is probable that the people of Ghassan
received it from the Apostle Paul ; it was known among
many of the tribes of Rabiah, and such a stronghold of
the faith was the Arab kingdom of Hira, that many
Christianized Arabs resorted there.
The doctrines of Mohammed took far deeper root
among those nations and peoples conquered by his im
mediate successors, and those who subsequently adopted
the religion of Mohammed at their hands, than it did

Arabia. 151
among the Arabs themselves generally. It is thought
that Mohammed's first idea was to turn his countrymen
to the worship of the one God, but that he was scandalized
at the worship of the Christians which came under his
observation at Damascus.
But among the ancient Arabs were some who ac
knowledged the one true God, and believed in the resur
rection of the dead — Job, for example, called by the Lord
" a perfect and an upright man," " none like him in all
the earth ; " and the eloquent and learned Koss of the
Ayadites, whose forefather Ayad, the son of Nazar, the
son of Maad, the son of Adnan, of the united family
of Ismail and Jorham, was that Ayad who settled his
family in Erack. Koss believed in the oneness of God
and the resurrection of the dead, and pressed this belief
continually upon his family.
Job is generally allowed to have been an Arabian.
He dwelt in the Land of Uz. The Arab historians say Uz
was the same as their Auz, which is only the Arabic
mode of spelling Uz, the son of Aram, the son of Shem,
whose son Ad was the father of the Adites. It is possible
that Job might have been of the Adites, or of Thamud, or
of some other of the lost Arabian tribes. The length of
years to which his life was prolonged after his. calamity,
added to those before that event, would class him
among the earlier patriarchs and before the time of
Abraham, while the description would make him a man
of more eminent piety than Shem, Salah, and Eber ; or
Job may have flourished in that dark period when light
was obscured but not wholly extinct, during the sojourn

152 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of Israel in Egypt, some time between Joseph and Moses,
although even the length of years of Job's life after his
restoration to prosperity — -namely, 140 years — was in
excess of the length of life which has been recorded
during that period, e.g. Levi, the son of Jacob, died in
Egypt at the age of 137 years ; Kohath, his son, at 133
years ; and Amram, his son and father of Moses, died at
the age of 137 years.
At one time I felt inclined to consider Al-Jawf,
the large oasis in the desert, about half-way between
Akabah and the head of the Persian Gulf, as the home
of Job, but on more mature consideration I think it
probable he was an inhabitant of the more northern part
of the Land of Uz, i.e. the southern half of the penin
sula of the Arabs, in Jabal Shammar, or the uplands of
Nejd, or perhaps in the neighbourhood of Khaibar, and
I think not improbably at or near Hejr, of which mention
has been made before, some district occupied by the
ancient Thamud.
In the desert, among the Badaween, I have very occa
sionally seen a copy of the Koran, and some few among
them may still be followers of Islam, but not fanatics, as
fanatics are to be found among people In Mohammedan
countries : among the mass of the Badaween, or dwellers
of the desert, what religion they have is, I think, a dim
obscured light, or rather a feeling that there is He who
is — the Lord God, Jehovah.

Arabia^ 153
Of the Language of the Arabs.
Although there may have been dialects slightly
differing among a people which, as we have seen, was
so widely scattered in families or tribes, there were two
great divisions — one called the language of Hamyar, the
other the pure or cleansed language.
The former was used by the descendants of Joktan
or Kahtan, after the time of Yaarab the son of Joktan,
who reigned in Yaman, and was used by the Hamyarites
until the time of Mohammed.
The pure or cleansed Arabic was that of the insti
tuted Arabs, those of Ismailitic descent, after the union
of Ismail with the Jorhamites.
The original language of the Arabs was, I consider,
the general Semitic spoken by the Joktanic Arabs in
common with the old or lost Arabians, those of Ad and
Thamud and other early descendants of Shem, and the
same as . the primitive Hebrew and Aramaic (Syriac)
(unless indeed the families of Joktan and Peleg, the sons
of Eber, had received from their father an especial
Semitic dialect), and the same as spoken by Abraham's
family, unless during a sojourn of four descents in the
land of the Chaldees Abraham's speech had changed or
had acquired some modification.
Yaarab or Jarab, the son of Joktan, who succeeded
his father in Yaman, was the first whose speech deviated
from the original language, or it was in his time that a
change took place and the Arabic known subsequently
as the language of Hamyar had its commencement, from

154 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
which circumstance he was called "Yaarab," literally
" O Arab" (or perhaps the Arab), the father or author of
Arabic. (It is possible he may have been called Jarab
before.) The Jorhamites, the descendants of that Jorham, the
son of Joktan, who founded a kingdom in Hijaz, spoke a
language which had diverged from their original Semitic
tongue ; it may have been the same dialect as that intro
duced by Yaarab and adopted, for we do not hear of
another having been made, but it is stated that it had
departed from the primitive Hebrew at the time of
Ismail. It would appear that Ismail, for a time, ac
cepted and learnt the language of the Jorhamites, but after
his union with them had taken place he restored their
language to a purer state, by correcting it up to the
standard of the primitive Hebrew or Syriac, from which
their language had far departed. This restored or
cleansed language was also called the Arabic of the
Koraish, and the clear or perspicuous language. It was
spoken by the Koraish, the tribe of Mohammed, in
common with other tribes of instituted Arabs, and in
that language was Alkoran written. After the time
of Mohammed it became the general language of all the
Arabs, and is perhaps the purest form known of the
Semitic language, and nearer and closer to the original
and to the primitive Hebrew and Syriac than any other,
although the Hamyaritic dialect, or what is known of it,
is generally accounted nearer to the Hebrew than the
Ismailitic. That the language spoken originally by Yaarab was

Arabia. 155
so can well be believed, i.e. that before he changed his
language he spoke the original Semitic tongue, identical
with primitive Hebrew or Syriac, or with but slight
modification ; but as the Arabs say Ismail cleansed
the language of the Jorhamites in Hijaz, and perhaps
restored it to the state of the primitive Hebrew, from
which it, as also the language of the Hamyarites, had
far departed, the restored cleansed Arabic which has
descended to the present day, and is to be found in its
purity among the desert tribes, ought to be nearer to the
primitive Hebrew than the dialect of the Hamyarites.
There is no record that this latter was restored ; but in
later times, but still before Mohammed, as the Ham
yarites inclined to Judaism, and when that religion had
been embraced to a very great extent, much of the
language of the Jews who settled in Yaman would
probably be incorporated in the Hamyarite dialect.
Thus that dialect, instead of being cleansed or restored
to primitive Hebrew, would be departing from it ; for the
language spoken by the Jews after their return from
Babylon was so changed and debased, that a fresh
translation of the Scriptures had to be made, for the
Jews could no longer understand the Hebrew even
of the days of the Kings.
The following account is a translation from Dr.
Pocock's " History of the Arabs " : —
" But with the Arabs were several dialects. The lan
guage in which Hamyar and the pure Arabs spoke, was
different from that which the Koraish used, and in which
Alkoran was written. That they call the Arabic of

156 Gleanings from- the Desert of Arabia.
Hamyar ; this the pure or cleansed Arabic, also the
dialect of the Koraish, in which they assert Ismail was
the first to speak, which cannot otherwise be under
stood than that after his affinity with the Jorhamites,
contracted by the intervention of marriage, he rendered
the language of the Arabs more pure, and perhaps cor
rected and polished it to the standard of the primitive
Hebrew, from which it had far departed. They narrate
by universal consent that he certainly accepted the ver
nacular from the Jorhamites themselves — did not teach
them a new language &*+}jXJ> ^yx^^i) ***¦* /?4-*>/*
(Min hum taallam Ismail al arabait) — ab illis didiclt
Ismail arabismum (inquib Jalab6 dainus alsoyutius in
L. Mezhar, c. 1). Unless perhaps we embrace the opinion
of those who (referring to the same), respecting that, say
Ismail was the first who spoke in the Arabic language,
who may wish it to be understood thus : he was
the first who, unmindful of his native tongue, embraced
Arabic. And therefore by some the clear perspicuous
Arabic language, in which the heaven-born Alkoran is
said to be descended in Alk, is called the language of the
Jorhamites ; and, on the other hand, it is probable that
they contracted something from the Hebrew of Ismail.
" However, that ancient dialect of the Arabs with
the Hamyarites seems to be more recently separated
from, or to be more closely related (propius abesse) than
that the other Arabs use, to the Hebrew language, or
otherwise Syriac, which they assert Yaarab spoke in
the first place (whom they regard as the father of

Arabia. 157
Arabic, and on that account i—S^l , Yaarab, because
it is stated he was the first whose speech turned from
Syriac to Arabic).
" From an example the thing becomes more clear.
Al-Jauhari and Mohammed al-Firauzabad narrate that
a certain Arab, when he appeared before the Hamyarite
king, was commanded to sit. The king saying to him,
U, ^O (Theb), he jumped down from the high place
(namely, a precipice of a mountain, as in the book
Mezhar) on which he stood, and miserably paid the
penalty of his folly by broken limbs. To the wonder
ing king, who asked the reason of the action, he re
plied that in the dialect of the Arabs Theb sounded
the same as jump. The king replied accordingly,
<-^--^-c' UlNIX- tj~?J (Lisa anda na arabait) — 'That
Arabic is not known to us '. .^ \s\s \^-t> ,,y*
(Man dakhul Dafar hafara) — 'He who enters Dafar'
(which city was the residence of the Hamyaritic king)
'should know the Hamyaritic dialect' — which words
have become a proverb, by which any one who dwells
among them is advised to accommodate himself to their
customs. Hence also (as we have said) the Hamyaritic
dialect approaches nearer to the Hebrew, or Syriac, or
Chaldean in certain respects (and also we have seen in
former pages they themselves inclined to Judaism) ; in
deed <»^o (Theb) with the Hamyarites is pronounced the
same as 3B» with the Hebrews and also the Syrians, and
as 2T? with the Chaldeans, from which in the imperative

158 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
comes 3H seder e (sit) ; but In the general dialect of the
Arabs it has an opposite meaning, namely, of 'dancing'
or of ' leaping up.' Besides, in the answer of the king,
the C^-J <s. (Arabait) is ended with the letter O
(T), which the Arabs are accustomed to indicate by &
(the second or soft H) ; it seems also to savour of
Syriac." These examples, produced by Dr. Pocock to show a
closer resemblance between the Hamyaritic dialect and
the Hebrew language than between the latter and the
-cleansed Arabic, indicate, I think, that the resemblance
was not to the primitive Semitic, early Hebrew, or
Syriac, but rather to the debased Hebrew of a later
period. Several customs in practice among the Arabs
in Yaman would seem to have been introduced by
Jews after the Babylonian captivity ; for example, that
of throwing people into a furnace of fire, as practised by
Thu Nowas ; and in like manner words and phrases may
have been interchanged and accepted. The Hamyaritic
dialect was used more exclusively in Yaman and by
those petty kingdoms who were tributary to the Tobaa,
and, it is probable, gradually departed more and more
in the course of time from the primitive language
originally spoken by Yaarab and Joktan, and latterly
became assimilated to Babylonian Hebrew and Chal
dean, until it passed away before the sweeping influence
of the Koran.
The Arab historian Jellaladi accounts for the greater

Arabia. 159
eloquence of the cleansed Arabic over the other dialects
from the following cause (and here it must be noticed he
speaks of dialects as of many, not of the Hamyaritic
only. These dialects were probably those spoken by
the various families which migrated from Yaman, each
or most having some slight modification according to
the period at which they departed from their mother
country, and varied again as to what intercourse they
might have with the Arabs of Hijaz who spoke the
cleansed language of Ismail. It would be wrong to
suppose that the Koraish tribe alone spoke the cleansed
language of Ismail, for all the tribes in Hijaz equally
trace their descent from Adnan, the descendant of
Kidar, Ismail's son) : viz. that the Koraish tribe were
the custodians and keepers of the temple at Mekka,
and inhabited the centre of Arabia, and thus were not
only more removed from other nations, and therefore
avoided contracting a vitiated speech, but were able to
collect and adopt all the most chaste phrases from those
Arabs who were in the habit of flocking to Mekka for
religious worship.
But the retention of a pure speech is owing, I think,
principally to another element, namely, the desert tribes.
The causes would be similar but far more marked.
They are really the inhabitants of the centre of Arabia,
and are the furthest of all removed from other peoples
and the chances of contracting a vitiated speech. To
them do the Mekkans and others resort to acquire the
Arabic language in its pure form, and to obtain a just
pronunciation. To the exclusiveness of the Badaween

160 Gleanings from tlie Desert of Arabia.
is to be attributed the purity of the language, and, I
think, also in a great measure its copiousness, for the
almost innumerable names for one and the same object
might well be derived from a people of very vivid
imagination and of great appreciation. Having much
time for contemplation, the lively wit and quick percep
tion of the Badaween would readily make apt and
appropriate comparisons, and the varied attributes of a
subject would speedily be adopted as so many designa
tions. Be this as it may, it is an undisputed fact that
the Arabs of the great tribes of the desert, among whom
reading and writing is almost unknown, possess and
speak the purest and softest Arabic. That they have
retained it and not acquired it from others must be
apparent. It is acknowledged on all hands that Arabic
as spoken by the Badaween is purer, and the pronuncia
tion more precise and softer, than as spoken by the
inhabitants of towns. The peculiar flow and softness of
the speech of the Badaween cannot fail to strike all who
have had the opportunity of hearing them speak. Mr.
Lewis Burckhardt, in speaking of the Arabic language in
his " Travels in Arabia," says : — " At Mekka in common
conversation the original language of the Koraish is
retained. Some neighbouring Badaween tribes, espe
cially those of Fahn and Hadheyl, use a dialect still
more pure and free from provincialism and grammatical
errors. In pronunciation the Mekkans imitate the
Badaween purity ; every letter has its precise and dis
tinct sound." The same author particularly mentioned
the ancient custom being kept up of the sons of the

Arabia.

161

Sherifs at Mekka (the princely family) being sent to be
educated in the desert by the Badaween, to acquire their
pure language and hardy habits and riding. The custom,
he says, is very ancient. " Mohammed was educated
among foreigners, in the tribe of Beni Sad, and his
example is continually quoted by the Mekkans when
speaking of the practice still usual among the Sherifs."
The same author states that the advantage of this
education is to be seen in after life, by the free noble
bearing, truthful and moral habits, and generous
character of those who have been so brought up.
Mr. Burckhardt also says, in speaking of the Arabic
language generally, that " the pronunciation of the
Badaween of Arabia is the best, of the Mekkans and the
people of Hijaz next, that of Baghdad and Yaman next
in purity." When it is considered that the Arabs have been
preserved as a distinct people for some four thousand
years, with an unbroken history extending from the
Flood to the present time, it is difficult to believe their
preservation should not be for some purpose, and that
there should not be a future for this great, free, and,
with one single exception (the Israelites), most remark
able people in the world.
General Character of the Arabs.
Kingdoms, kings, princes, lords, and Tobaa have
passed away, as also the great empire established by
the successors of Mohammed, but the Arab nation still
M

1 62 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
remains, a great and free people, without a parallel in
history. Love of freedom, independence in thought and
action, truthfulness, largeness of heart, generosity, and
hospitality seem to have always formed strongly marked
features of the national character. The Arabs are also
naturally light-hearted, patient and enduring, highly
appreciative, and very intelligent.
History and song commemorate the deeds of heroes
and poets and celebrate the praises of the generous. A
few instances will give some idea of their national
character, showing how worthy deeds are done and also
how thoroughly they are appreciated.
The generosity of a certain Hesen of Banu Fazarah
(which evidently pervaded his whole being), who exults
when one comes to him for help or assistance, is thus
described : " As when thou shalt see him to whom thou
approachest springing forward with gladness, as if he
had received from thee what thou seekest from him."
Of another, one Hateem, whose generosity has been
handed down as a proverb, "More generous than
Hateem." Hateem was himself a poet, whose verses
reflect his benevolence and whose actions confirmed his
words. The author Al-Maidah thus speaks of Hateem :.
" He was generous, a poet, brave and all-conquering ;
when he fought, it was to be triumphant ; when he
had acquired spoils, he gave to the spoiled ; when
besought, he gave ; if he contested with the powerful, it
was to overcome ; when he contended in the race, he
excelled ; when he took captives, he released them."

Arabia. 163
" More bountiful than Kaab " is another proverb.
Of Kaab it has been said, "When he was taking a
journey through the desert, and those who were with
him were distressed for want of water, that which he
had taken for his own use he would divide into equal
portions for general distribution ; and then again to
some unknown one, who looked on him with thirsting
eyes, he ordered more to be given (from his own portion),
while he himself was dying of thirst."
Of all the titles which have been bestowed upon
great men to perpetuate their memory, such as the great,
the brave, the heroic, the lion-hearted, the magnificent,
the tender and true, I think it would be difficult to find
one more noble or which conveys so much as that
bestowed on Malek, one of the kings of Yaman, of the
family of Saksak, the son of Sharhabil, namely, NasJieral
7ieam — " scattering benefits ; " blessings flowing from him,
benefits showered upon all who came into contact with
him as he passed on through life's journey. He it was
who caused the brass statue to be put up in the desert
to warn others of the danger of proceeding further, and
inscribed thereon, " Nothing behind me!'
Such attributes are to be found among the Arabs
of to-day. There are still Hateems and Kaabs, and
heroes like Anterah (a man celebrated among the Banu
Abas). These incidents from the history of the Arab
nation speak for themselves, and require no comment.
The Arabs are a very pure race, naturally pure in
mind and body. In person they are rather tall and
well formed, with long limbs and well-developed ex-

1 64 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
tremities, nor did I observe any extreme meagreness,
which has been often stated as a leading feature among
the Badaween ; at the same time a very fat man is not
often seen. The women have well-rounded forms, with
beautifully turned limbs. I have seen among the Bada
ween men six feet in height.

CHAPTER II.
THE DESERT OF ARABIA.
The desert extends from where the borders of Syria
touch the Euphrates in the north, to near the coast of
Hadramaut in the south ; it is continued between Syria
and the Euphrates, between Hijaz and Jabal Shammar
and the Najd provinces, and between Yaman and
Oman, and again on the east between the provinces of
Najd and Al-Hasa on the Persian Gulf. Although
many parts of these deserts are utterly barren, there are
others containing excellent pasturage ; and many parts
barren during the greater portion of the year yield grass
and hold water after the rains.
That great desert south of the provinces' of Najd,
and stretching from Hijaz and Yaman on the west
towards Oman on the east, is called by the Badaween
Roba al-Khaly, " the empty or deserted abode ;" and
although Mr. Burckhardt was assured by Badaween that
there are many parts of Roba al-Khaly which have
never been explored, owing to the utter absence of
vegetation, yet after rains, and in winter, some of the
tribes of Hijaz, Najd, and Yaman find pasture for their

1 66 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
herds in those parts bordering respectively on their own
countries or districts. Tadmor must have been a large
oasis in the desert, such as Al-Jawf is now, north-west of
Jabal Shammar. On the borders of the desert there
are Badaween more or less settled, some of whom culti
vate the soil, and form an intermediate class between
the greater nomadic tribes and the settled inhabitants
of cultivated districts and townsmen. There are certain
parts of these deserts, traversed by caravans, which are
perhaps quite barren all the year round, and in which
wells are to be found only at an interval of three or
perhaps four days, such as the route from Al-Jawf to
Jabal Shammar.
Almost every part of the desert — perhaps all parts
— have distinctive names; indeed, the several camping
grounds which are visited by the tribes of Badaween all
have names. Wells and hollows, hills small and great,
are also all known by name, and the latter are all styled
mountains. That which is wrongly called by Europeans
in general the Syrian desert, was the Arabia Deserta of
Ptolemy, and has for the greater part the name of Al-
Hammad ; and the desert, again, In the neighbourhood
of or over against Damascus, is called Badijah es Sham,
or the desert of Damascus.
'The deserts present a different appearance at dif
ferent seasons of the year ; vast plains, at one time
apparently barren wastes, in the spring and after the
rains are in certain parts plentifully supplied with pas
turage and aromatic shrubs, luxuriant grass, and even
flowers. The features are also varied : there are rocky

The Desert of Arabia. 167
gorges, level plains of sand, tracts strewn with large
stones, so thickly scattered that there appears scarcely
room to place your foot ; in other parts the sandy plains
are covered with small stones ; there are depressions
and also hills of sand and rock ; in some places there are
long rolling undulations ; in other places the undula
tions are more marked, and appear like a succession of
long waves of sand, with deep and wide troughs and
abrupt crests.
There is, of course, much monotony in a desert life,
but in travelling there is also much interest; and in
certain parts of the desert, and at certain seasons, it
is quite enjoyable ; the peculiarly fresh and pure air,
and the calm nights, cool even in the hottest weather
after a day under the fiercest sun, are enjoyable, and must
be experienced to be appreciated. On the other hand,
in summer the heat is excessive ; the sun pours down
in unopposed fierceness on a ground of sand or stone,
interspersed with thoroughly dried grass, if any should
remain, for there is not anything to afford the slightest
shade; the great heat is often tempered by a high
wind, but this raises storms and clouds of sand, borne
along in columns like water-spouts at a great velocity.
In winter the northern part of the desert is deserted; the
rains are often very heavy, and in fine weather strong
winds sweep over these vast plains with a piercing
coldness, and there are frosts by night.

1 68 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
The Desert.
Autumn had passed, the Anazah had returned
south, Christmas had come, before we were enabled
to cross the desert to the Euphrates, and to visit some
of those tribes of Badaween in their tents, who do not,
like the Anazah, migrate to any great distance.
Most travellers from Syria to Mosul and Baghdad
proceed from Aleppo by the post-road by Bir and
Orfah, which probably has been the route pursued by
travellers from the banks of the Euphrates and Tigris
from the earliest times. Halab or Aleppo, on the verge
of the desert, was situate in early days, I doubt not, in an
oasis, and was a border settlement of the Land of Aram,
from the walls of which, were increased powers of vision
granted, in a south-easterly direction might be had an
uninterrupted view of deserts for several hundred miles.
It wanted but half an hour to sundown on a December
day as we rode past Bab al-Faraj ("the Gate of Gazing")
at Halab. We had accepted the invitation of the Shaykh
of one of those Badaween tribes or families who had
settled, for a time at least, on the borders of the desert,
nearer to settled inhabitants, who occupied a village
called Spheri, to pass the night at his house. The
Shaykh had ridden in to guide and escort us. Night
soon closed in upon us, and after having ridden for
several hours, and when not more than half an hour
from our night's quarters, a fog came suddenly upon us,
and I, at least, became convinced that we were wandering

The Desert of Arabia. 169
from our course. Our friend and companion, whom for
want of a better title I shall style "our Effendi," who was
well known to many of the Badaween, and held de
servedly in high esteem by them : to him I mentioned
my suspicion, and he quietly replied that It did not
matter, for as we were going east we should eventually
arrive at the Euphrates. The old Shaykh laughed at
the idea of his not knowing his way home ; yet we
owed our arrival at our destination for the night to the
following incident.
Our party consisted of our Effendi ; two Arab gentle
men, residents of Aleppo ; myself and my companion,
and a Bagdad groom. We were well mounted, riding
three and four-year-old colts ; our Effendi on a six-year-
old Jelfan,* which carried what ought to have been, but
was not, the steadying weight of some sixteen stone, for
he jumped about like a goat ; and the Arabs were riding
mares. Our baggage, provisions, and tent, under charge
of our Servants, carried by a small caravan of Kadishes
(common horses) and mules, had preceded us by a more
regular route some hours. The capering Jelfan of our
Effendi made a playful snatch at one of the colts, and
both horses went up in the air ; a hat was knocked or
fell off, to search for which one had to dismount, and the
whole party halted, which permitted us to hear the bark
ing of dogs at some distance. The welcome sound must
come from Spheri, but it comes from our right : we alter
our course accordingly, quicken our pace, and eventually,
after stumbling down one side of a gully and scrambling
* Jelfan — the name of a particular family or strain of blood.

1 70 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
up the other, we find ourselves tripping over the
ropes of tents, which were those belonging to the
people of our Shaykh, pitched outside their village,
as is quite a common practice with Arabs who live
in villages. It was some little time before we were
certain it was Spheri ; and then there was a difficulty
in getting in : we had to make nearly the circuit of
the village before an entrance could be effected, for
rains which had lately fallen had nearly surrounded
Spheri with water.
Such villages consist of a collection of high round
huts, with lofty conical roofs, built of sun-dried bricks ;
and, seen from a distance, appear not unlike a hop-field
when the poles are piled after harvest. We were in
formed that these villages are not erected by Arabs, but
that they employ other people to build for them.
The Shaykh's house stood nearly in the centre of the
village. Lights are brought, by which we can see that
we enter a large court, open to the sky, surrounded by a
series of these round huts, each of which forms a sepa
rate apartment ; of these some are used as sleeping
chambers, others for stables and store-houses and grana
ries, and most of them are entered by a low doorway.
Our baggage had not arrived ; overtaken by the fog, the
caravan had halted : but we were made thoroughly at
home. No matter at what hour you may arrive at an
Arab camp or settlement, at midnight, early morning, or
mid-day, you are never unwelcome ; you never seem to
put them out, or, at all events, Arab hospitality over
comes all difficulties. Our horses are put into some of

The Desert of Arabia. 171
the buildings ; we are shown into another on the side
of the enclosure opposite to the Shaykh's domestic
quarters. Good carpets were soon spread, cushions
placed for pillows, and rich thickly-quilted coverlets
were brought in to cover us if we wished to seek sleep.
We had coffee, and in less than half an hour large Arab
cakes, and a mess made from grapes, were served up ;
after having partaken of which our Effendi was soon
sound asleep. It was past midnight when our baggage
arrived, after which we had some tea.
Our host the Shaykh sat opposite to where we were
lying, talking with an Arab friend, in low tones, to
avoid disturbing the slumber of those who might be
asleep ; they smoked, and drank water, and washed
their mouths from time to time, and this went on till
near daybreak. Occasionally our host would retire to
his own apartments for a few minutes, and once returned
with a little child of three or four years of age, who
stared at us with astonishment. I have observed that
sitting up, or getting up frequently during the night, is
a common practice among Arabs, and does not appear
to cause them any Inconvenience.
Soon after sunrise the yard was nearly filled with
Arabs, who had been directed to appear with their
mares. The horse of the tribe was a large-framed, big-
boned, powerful grey, but did not show very much
quality ; several of the mares were good, and some few
good-looking. A mare of the strain Ras al-Fadawi
was of superior class, but having broken down, she
appeared to be a sad cripple, with a fair head, beauti-

1 72 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ful neck, superb shoulders, grand back and quarters and
thighs. After a hasty breakfast, we pursued our journey, our
host providing us with a guide to the next Arab en
campment.
Lake Jubul.
After leaving Spheri, which is situate at the foot
and almost at the extremity of a range of hills which
runs in an easterly direction from Aleppo, you appear to
enter upon a boundless plain.
We skirted the lake of Jubul, leaving it on our right
hand, and the village also of the same name. The lake
was full of water at this season; in summer its dimen
sions, so far as the water is concerned, are much
diminished : as the waters dry up, a deposit of salt Is
left. The city of Aleppo and the surrounding country
are supplied with salt from this lake, but it is wanting
in some properties. The river Daradax, which rises some
.way to the north, runs into the lake. This district is
said to be that where David smote Hadadezer, king of
Zobah, " as he went to recover his border at the river
Euphrates," or "to stablish his dominion by the river
Euphrates," which event would appear to have been just
before Abishai smote the Edomites in the Valley of
Salt, or perhaps at the same time ; and although the
gentle valley of the Daradax and Lake Jubul may
have been called, and aptly so, the Valley of Salt, it
does not seem to have been the place where Abishai
fought with and overcame the Edomites. This northern

The Desert of Arabia. 173
Valley of Salt would be just the place where a great
battle might take place, and the locality would be just
that which, by a victory gained, would lay the whole of
Northern Syria at the conqueror's feet, would give him
the key to the Euphrates, and finally enable him to
establish his dominion from the river of Egypt to the
river Euphrates.
Jedaid6 is the name given to a house and a settle
ment forming now the head-quarters of the Hernadi
Arabs, who claim to be an offshoot from the Koraish.
Their late Shaykh, Hadji Bertran, having been ap
pointed warden of the Syrian border on the desert, was
supposed to protect the borders of Syria and the Arabs
who had taken to cultivation under the protection of the
Turkish Government, from incursions from the Anazah,
when they visited that portion of the desert, which some
of them do annually ; so Hadji Bertran built himself a
house in the desert. It was not a bad house, and had
an upper storey ; there was a very large court, enclosed
by a high wall and entered by large gates. It was built
on a slight elevation ; some trees had been planted, which
gave the place an air of comfort, and looked promising
for the future. Some buildings of more modest pre
tensions in the immediate vicinity, and tents pitched
among them, made the settlement quite a place of im
portance. We arrived there about midday, and were speedily
surrounded by tall Arabs, who ran in from all directions.
Many of them knew our Effendi, and were eager to

1 74 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
express their pleasure at seeing him again and to make
their salutations.
A nice-looking youth of sixteen years of age soon
appeared from the house, and with much dignity re
buked the Arabs for crowding around us, welcomed us-
cordially, and pressed us to enter the house of his father.
He was one of Bertran's youngest sons ; he did the
honours as his two elder brothers were away from home.
All the elders of the tribe were present when we were
seated, and with them an Abyssinian, a merchant, I
believe, who had lately visited the tribe. After having
partaken of coffee, and after the youth had replied to-
the inquiries our Effendi made after his family and
people, we rose to depart. The youth implored us to
stay, saying it would be a shame if we passed on without
resting under his father's roof. He supplied us, however,
with a guide to conduct us to a small encampment of
the Mowali at Dar Hafar.
There is apparently nothing to mark Dar Hafar
from the surrounding desert. We had been ascending
for some time, and on the summit of a long swelling hill
of sand and small stones were a few black tents pitched
by a well, whose rocky mouth was level with the ground.
There was also a pool or pond of water formed partly
from the overflow from the well. This was Dar Hafar.
From a distance we could see an Arab mount and ride
towards us. Springing from his mare's back to the
ground, he greeted our Effendi with every mark of
respect and esteem. This was Shaykh Narhar of the
Mowali, not the Shaykh of the tribe, but owner of
the tents before us, and the elder of the small camp.

The Desert of Arabia. 175
On our arrival at Narhar's tent, Arabs came at once
to take care of our horses ; this was invariably done at
eveiy Badaween camp. The natural politeness of these
Arabs is most pleasing. While coffee is being prepared,
we will give an account of our Shaykh and his tent.
The latter was divided into two parts ; that towards the
west was occupied by his family, and the other was
swept out and recarpeted before we entered.
Narhar was about fifty years of age, tall, and of
a large and powerful frame. He had acquired, by con
stant exposure to sun and wind, a general colour of fine
old mahogany. He was a well-known character in the
desert, celebrated for his daring and prowess. During his
eventful career of active service it is stated that he had
made prisoner with his own hand upwards of one hundred
men and a like number of mares ; and we were told
he had only lost one mare himself. At this time, at
all events, he was living in retirement and following a
pastoral life. Through the night Narhar, with his son,
a remarkably fine young man, who looked about twenty
years of age, kept watch over our tent and horses.
From Dar Hafar, Narhar became our guide, and con
tinued as such during this journey in the desert. A
better one we could scarcely find, for he knew every
inch of ground, eveiybody, and every horse. We were
ready for a start by sunrise ; leaving his son in charge
of his family and tents, Narhar led the way on his low
but lengthy little mare, on a cold frosty morning.
At a camping ground called Ain al-Mara we found
another camp of the Mowali. It is a well known camp-

1 76 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ing-ground, but were it not for the tents and water there
are no landmarks discernible to a stranger. Here we
saw a rather nice horse of the Abu Janub strain : his
head, shoulders, back, and quarters were very fine ; his
neck was rather deficient, but he was in low condition ;
his forelegs showed signs of hard work.
Descending the eastern slope of a long swelling wave
of ground, we enter upon a beautiful wide-spreading
valley of the shortest and finest grass, and of elastic
turf ; no lawn in England could excel it in smoothness.
A stream of about ten or twelve feet In width, of clear
and sparkling water, runs through the valley from north
to south, called "Lallah Mohammed." A large army
might be encamped in this valley and completely hidden
from view.
In our route going eastwards we crossed successive
long sweeping undulations, ascending and descending
them rather obliquely. Our view was circumscribed in
our front, and our guide, Narhar, cantered on before us
continually to reconnoitre from the summit of each
undulation. Two horsemen were seen on one occasion,
who proved to be travelling black- or shoeing-smiths ;
such go about the desert visiting different encampments,
to perform work that may be required by their craft and
to shoe horses, and to the best of my remembrance these
were the only ones we met. About half-way from the
Daradax, or river Jubul, to the Euphrates stands an
old tower in ruins. Approaching from the west, it is to be
sighted at the distance of several hours, and appeared to
us, when first seen, to be at the distance of about half an

The Desert of Arabia. 177
hour's ride ; we were, however, from four to five hours
riding before we arrived at it, and during that time it was
frequently lost to our sight. The tower is some thirty
feet square ; it looked much larger from a distance. It
had been built of finely squared blocks of stone of a
warm colour, which seemed to have been well adjusted,
apparently without any cement. There is a gateway in
the centre, partly blocked up by stones and debris ; this
was flanked by two buttresses or small towers. The
top of the large central tower is finished by a fine stone
cornice. On some of the stones certain letters or charac
ters were still visible ; to me they were not very distinct :
our Effendi, who was a thorough master of Greek, pro
nounced them to be of that language. There is evidence
that it formed part of a larger building, or was connected
with others, and was probably a fortress in the desert to
protect the borders.
The elevated ground on which the tower stands is
crowned with rocks, and slopes away at first rather
abruptly, and afterwards in gentle undulations, to the
south-east into a magnificent expanse of desert scenery.
The ground was thickly covered by small shrubs and
grass intervening, of various colour, partly from the
effect of the glowing light and deep shadows from the
declining sun. An Arab boy at some distance, and some
sheep, which he was driving down the slopes towards an
encampment lying far away to the south, the tents of
which were just visible as dark specks, seemed to be,
besides our party, the only living objects.
Many parts of the desert are like Newmarket Heath
N

1 78 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
on an enormous scale. What a race-course might be
here ! What ground for autumnal manoeuvres ! What
a field for the cavalry officer !
Riding on a good horse in the desert in fine weather
is most enjoyable ; the fresh, sweet, pure air is delightful
to the senses, health-giving and invigorating to the
mind and body. Although not a tree is to be seen, the
desert scenery is often varied. As the Euphrates is
approached, in the northern part of the desert are bald
round-topped hills thickly covered with thyme ; these
either gradually open out into wide-spreading plains or
descend to the river in precipitous cliffs. Going east,
the great river, the river Euphrates, is seen through
openings among the hills, and from their summits you
look upon "Al-Jazirah" of the Arabs, usually called
Mesopotamia by others, the bold swelling hills of which,
and the abrupt cliffs of limestone which confine the
Euphrates to its channel, are painted blue, crimson, and
gold, and glistening white by the western sun.
Looking south through the passes of the hills, you
can trace the river for miles, and where the stream is
not actually to be seen, its course is marked by the lime
stone cliffs ; a long strip of sand and a wide stretch of
open desert on the right bank, dotted over with black
tents, are closed on the horizon by a line of blue hills.
In riding over these hills on the right of the
Euphrates we passed the spot where our Effendi and his
son had been taken prisoners a few years before by a party
of Shammar horsemen, who had crossed the river. They
had been overtaken by a snowstorm, something rather

The Desert of Arabia. 1 79
unusual, and found themselves surrounded by a belt of
Arab horsemen, who had issued unperceived round the
bases of the hills and gradually narrowed their circle.
The young man had been unhorsed and his horse
taken away, when other horsemen appeared on the
scene. Riding over the top of these hills, they perceived
that the others were of the Shammar, and immediately
charged and rescued our Effendi and his small party,
put the Shammar to flight, and got back the horse and
baggage, but not without bloodshed. These horsemen
were Mowali, led by the Shaykh of that tribe, Ahmed
Bey, a renowned warrior. As the Badaween of the
desert have no firearms, in such a country as I have
attempted to describe, a great battle might be fought
without attracting the notice of any who might be only
a short way off.
About four miles from the Euphrates, where it makes
a bold sweep round Mount Arudah, a lofty and isolated
hill — or it might be called a mountain — on the summit of
which is the tomb of a great Shaykh, was an encamp
ment of Weldi Arabs, to which we were wending our
way some little time after sundown. This portion of the
Weldi, which is a very large tribe, was under Shaykh
Mohammed al-Ghanin. Narhar had cantered on to
announce our approach — a piece of etiquette which
ought never to be neglected — and presently we were met
by two horsemen. They are Jassim, one of the Shaykh's
sons, and Abd-er-Rakhman, a guest. They spring from
their mares to receive our Effendi, and appear right
glad to see him ; we are welcomed as strangers and

i8o Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
guests, and doubly so as friends of our Effendi. Wc
were disappointed to hear from Jassim that his father
had gone to Mekka.
It was dark when we arrived in camp, and an escort
was at once sent off to bring in our baggage, for we had
got considerably in advance of our small caravan.
Arabs swarm out and take our horses : we are con
ducted to the tent ; carpets and cushions are arranged for
us on three sides of the fire, more fuel is thrown on, and
soon there is a glorious blaze ; water is put on to boil,
coffee is being got ready. One man opens a bag and
takes out what he considers a sufficient supply of berries ;
these he carefully sifts, picking out every particle of
foreign matter and any imperfect berries. The berries
are put into a dish or pan with a long handle, and held
over the fire, and care is taken that the berries are dis
tributed evenly and are separate ; then they are turned
over with a large spoon until properly roasted and
of a nice nut-brown colour ; another man then pounds
them in a wooden mortar, breaking or crushing the
berries, but not reducing them to powder. The coffee
is next put into the water which has been boiled, and
is boiled ; it is poured into another pot, and again
into a third, being boiled up three times, and then
poured into small cups and handed round. This is
the universal custom of preparing coffee in the desert.
The townspeople are not nearly so particular in the
preparation of coffee, consequently their beverage Is
not to be compared with the coffee of the Badaween-
Coffee must be boiled to obtain its full flavour and

The Desert of Arabia. 181
•aroma. No more of the berries should be roasted than
is sufficient for one decoction ; by grinding coffee it
loses both aroma and flavour ; overroasting it, until the
berries are of a dark colour or approaching black,
destroys the flavour, which is only to be fully obtained
by the simple process in a common pot : our compli
cated coffee machines are ingenious inventions for pre
venting the preparing of coffee in perfection. A fresh
supply is speedily prepared, succeeded by another and
another ; as long as any one will drink, so long they go
on making coffee, the whole routine being gone through
on each occasion.
There are numbers of Badaween of the tribe present,
who sit or stand opposite to us ; two mares are in that
portion of the tent devoted for receptions and towards
that end which is curtained off as the women's apart
ment. A sheep was killed, and In a very short time an
excellent dish, smoking hot, was placed before us. We
use our fingers ; forks are not considered necessary in
the desert.
This account will give some idea of the usual re
ception at a Badaween camp, and the universal custom
of preparing coffee. Sometimes there may be more
ceremony, and it varies according to the wealth of the
Shaykh and power and importance of the tribe ; but
the welcome is as hearty, the hospitality the same,
whether the camp be large like that of Al-Ghanin, or
small like that of our guide Narhar. The Shaykh's
tent is generally about sixty or seventy feet in length,
although there are some much larger in the greater

1 82 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
tribes of Anazah. They are made by hand, of black
goats' hair, principally by the women of the tribe, and
will generally last through three generations — grand
father, father, and son. One front is usually open to the
air, and generally one end. The size of the tents of other
members of a tribe Is dependent upon the wealth of the
owner and the numbers in his family, but seldom larger
than is absolutely necessary; they are supported — at
least, such tents as the Shaykhs' — generally by four large
poles towards the centre, with smaller ones at each end,
and stretched by long strong ropes of camels' hair. The
lance of the Shaykh is seen in front of the tent, or the
blade appears above through an opening.
We were pleased and gratified ; our reception had
been at once respectful and cordial, and the smiling
Badaween all looked happy.
We heard from Shaykh Jassim that an Anazah Bada
ween, with a fine four-year-old colt, had lately been his
guest, but had gone for greater security to another camp
of the Weldi, on the left bank of the Euphrates. This
great tribe was formerly between the two rivers Eu
phrates and Tigris.
Late as it was, two men were sent off by the Shaykh,
with a message from him, and a letter written by his
guest Abd-er-Rakhman, who was a learned man, to ask
the Anazah to come to his tent with his horse. In
the mean time, our luggage had arrived and our tent was
pitched. Our Arab friend who had accompanied us
was a great favourite in the desert — his house was the
resort of many Badaween when they had occasion to

The Desert of Arabia. 183
visit Aleppo— and a merry night was spent in the
Shaykh's tent, the guest and principal members of the
tribe sitting round the blazing fire, talking and singing,
and listening to stories and recitations of poetry from
Abd-er-Rakhman, while coffee was freely circulated until
early hours.
Here we were told of an event, descriptive of Arab or
desert life, which had occurred some years before. A
party of some five and twenty Anazah had stopped for
the night at Al-Ghanin's tent. A lad rushed In and
told the Weldi Shaykh that ' a party of the Shammar
had crossed the river and had driven off his flocks. Al-
Ghanin at once took steps to pursue ; but the Anazah
arose and said, " Let that be our duty," and, mounting
their mares, which were picketed outside the tent, set
off in pursuit, and returned, after some hours, with the
sheep they had rescued.
Abd-er-Rakhman had been carefully educated at the
Madrasah, the college at Aleppo. He spends several
months of the year among the Badaween in the desert,
going from tribe to tribe with merchandise and little
things likely to be useful to them. His agreeable
manners, fund of information, and other good qualities,
always make him a welcome guest.
A different man in appearance is Abd-er-Rakhman
in the desert to Abd-er-Rakhman in Aleppo, where he
has his own house, and spends the hot season. In camp,
with a Shaykh's black Aba (cloak), a sombre-coloured
Kaffiyeh (head-dress worn by Badaween), he looks
swarthy enough ; but see him when he comes to call

1 84 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
upon you In the city : dust and smoke removed by the
bath, fresh and fair of face and countenance, with clear
blue eyes does he appear, simply but elegantly dressed,
a small neat turban, white, on which is worked a neat
sprig pattern in gold, with cotton breeches and under
coat, over which is thrown a long loose cloak, with a
white ground, on which is a small elegant flower pattern,
and on his feet Arab slippers of scarlet goatskin.
The wind was cold and in our teeth as we rode
towards Shass, where was another camp of the Weldi
tribe ; but we enjoyed the ride, for it was over fine
swelling undulations and round the bases of higher hills,
and across wide, level plains of sand, loam, and elastic
turf, in places thickly covered with thyme and other
small shrubs. We passed Mount Arudah on our right,
and after crossing a plain of five or six miles in width
from west to east, the view was shut in on the north,
south, and west by hills, and in front by the cliffs in
Al-Jazirah across the river. Over this plain, I expect, the
river had at some time swept. We descended through
a narrow gorge to the steep banks of the Euphrates.
On each side of the gorge were pitched the tents of the
Weldi. The Shaykh's tent was on a small level plat
form on the bank of the river, where the gorge termi
nated, sheltered from the north by a lofty cliff of lime
stone, commanding a view of the Euphrates southwards,
and of the opposite bank of the river. The ancient
Charchemish is to the north-west, and beyond is Birijik,
where the post-road from Syria to Mosul (Nineveh)
crosses the Euphrates, and passes through to Orfah and

The Desert of Arabia. 185
Diarbekr. At or near Birijik it is, I think, reasonable
to believe the Euphrates was crossed by all expeditions,
military or otherwise, from Assyria into Syria ; and at or
near Birijik, I expect, Abram crossed on his way to the
land of Canaan.
Hamdan, Shaykh of the camp, and a sub-Shaykh
of the Weldi under Mohammed al-Ghanin, received us
courteously. Our party had been increased by Shaykh
Jassim and Abd-er-Rakhman, and our baggage had been
escorted by a party of Jassim's Arabs, which left us free
to ride as we pleased. The greeting between Ham
dan and our Arab friend was very cordial ; they held
each other's hands, and looked each other steadfastly
in the face, and in good humour joked about the
appearance of certain grey hairs in their respective
beards. Hamdan was about forty-five years of age, and I
think most would say, as we did to ourselves, " What a
thorough gentleman ! " His appearance, bearing, the
ease and grace of his manner, his kindness, courtesy, and
constant thought for the comfort and welfare of his
guests, would allow of no other name. He was about
middle height, rather slight and spare in form, yet withal
square made ; speaking eyes, expressing kindness of
heart and benevolence ; and he was possessed of a quiet
dignity which commanded respect and ready obedience.
The Euphrates at Shass is broad and the current
rapid. The amount of water in the river, of course, varies
very much at different seasons and times of the year_
There are two ways of crossing the river : single persons

1 86 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
cross on an inflated goatskin ; and it is also crossed by a
Killuck, a slight raft supported by inflated goatskins.
It is made thus : a few slender spars are placed across
others and lashed by yarn, thus forming an open plat
form, to each angle of which is fastened \a goatskin ;
after these first four, one skin is added for each person
the Killuck has to carry.
While we were stopping at Hamdan's camp, we saw
one small Killuck repaired, and a large one, capable of
carrying over ten or twelve persons, constructed. The
men employed in making the Killuck were not of the
Weldi camp, and I do not think they were Arabs at all,
although they spoke Arabic. It struck us that the
Badaween and these people did not very readily under
stand each other, nor were they understood generally
by those of our own party. They were decidedly
different in appearance; they were, however, good-looking
and well-made men, of middle height, broad-shouldered,
and very symmetrical, and of good muscular development,
but they had not the length of the Arab, or perhaps
Badawee, about them. They were of copper colour,.
with black hair. My impression is that they belonged to
a people located on the banks of the Lower Euphrates,
where that river and the Tigris become one, whose occu
pation is with matters connected with water. I am not
certain whether families of this people are settled along
the banks of the Euphrates and Tigris, or whether gangs
of men travel up and down ; my impression is that I
was told that they were migratory, and that they paid
periodical visits along the rivers in a similar way to the

The Desert of Arabia. 187
shoeing-smiths who go from tribe to tribe in the desert.
They were thoroughly at home in the Avater, and,
although the weather was cold, they seemed to enjoy it,
and the water ran off their smooth and shining skin or
stood in globules upon It. Their features were good,
and I should be inclined to think they were of Cushite
origin. We did not see them when we first arrived at
Shass ; they appeared, I think, on the second day, when
the small raft was repaired. I believe they had been
sent for.
Soon after our arrival, Hamdan despatched a
messenger across the river, for the owner of the Anazah
horse had not responded to Shaykh Jassim's request..
An Arab appeared, received his instructions from his
Shaykh, Hamdan, , and trotted off with what appeared
to be a long bladder in his hand, but which was really a
goatskin, to the nearest or most appropriate place for
crossing, where he inflated his skin, took off his only
garment, and, laying his breast upon the skin, com
mitted himself to the river, and by use of his legs and
the aid of the current eventually got safe to land in
Al-Jazirah. Shaykh Jassim and Abd-er-Rakhman crossed the
following day in the small Killuck to see the Anazah,
and did not return until late in the evening. The Anazah
had agreed to come down from the hills with his horse
the next morning. Frequent voyages were made which
all ended in disappointment.
The anticipated arrival of the Anazah and his horse
on the bank of the river caused much excitement. The

1 88 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
whole tribe turned out and watched for their arrival
through the greater part of the day ; gloom sat on
Hamdan's brow, on our account, we felt convinced.
We ascertained long afterwards that the man with
whom the Anazah was staying, for reasons of his own,
had prevailed upon his guest not to remove his horse.
Among the Weldi at Shass was a destitute Anazah
Badawee, whose wife had died leaving two young
children. Hamdan afforded them an asylum, and the
children were brought up by his wife. This poor
Anazah wanted to make an arrangement with Abd-er-
Rakhman, which is, we were told, not unusual in the
desert. It was proposed by the stranger Badawee that
he should take one of the two mares which Abd-er-
Rakhman had with him, and proceed to the Najd to
retrieve his fortunes ; at a specified time he was to
return, when the owner of the mare would receive one-
half of that which the borrower had acquired.
From Shass we proceeded In a southerly direction, to
visit other camps spread over the desert at this time.
We pass again Mount Arudah, but now quite close,
under its almost perpendicular side, not at all unlike
the Rock of Gibraltar. I expect the river at one time
washed its base, but it is now some two miles distant.
The channel of the Euphrates appears to have settled
eastwards. Shaykh Jassim and his Arabs left us, with
Abd-er-Rakhman ; the former to return to his father's
camp, the latter to meet us hereafter. We were still on
the right bank of the Euphrates ; we did not follow its
course, but came upon it from time to time. I have

The Desert of Arabia. 189
neglected to give a descriptive sketch of Jassim, which I
will endeavour to do as he appeared standing on the
steep bank of the Euphrates watching the movements
on the other side of the river. He was about twenty-five
or thirty years of age, about five feet eight inches in
height, robust and rather burly in build, with well-turned
and powerful limbs. He was quiet and almost passive in
his manner, not addicted constitutionally to much super
fluous activity, but just such a man as, if well trained,
would be a difficult one to beat at most things requiring
strength, force, and endurance. When addressed, his
answer was always accompanied with a smile indicative
of inherent good nature. He was fair of complexion,
and his brown beard had a warm ruddy tinge ; his eyes
were peculiar, in colour somewhat of a ruddy gold, not
unlike an eagle's; they were wide open too, and appeared
to be the most active features in his body. When he
spoke, his voice came full and sonorous, and without any
exertion, from his deep wide chest. He seemed to stand
as firmly planted on his feet as a rock, and gave one the
idea that if any one were to run against him he would
rebound, while Jassim would stand unmoved, with a
sunny smile on his countenance.
The next encampment we visited was in the plain
of Hafsa. It was considerably after sundown and very
dark before Ave arrived at our destination ; there was a
strong heaving wind, and we found considerable diffi
culty in keeping our cloaks around us : unless we kept
close we could not see each other. There was a long
streak of pale light from east to west on the horizon,

1 90 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
which showed up a dark mass in our front which we
were told was our destination ; frequent flashes of
lightning indicated a thunderstorm in the distance ; the
.ground was rough and broken, and hidden in general
dark gloom ; there were large pools of water which we
did not see, or were not aware of until almost into them.
Narhar, when he cantered on to announce our approach
as usual, was soon lost in the gloom. We held on our
course for the dark mass in front, until brought up by a
morass. Our Effendi, who had now come up to us, said
there was nothing to do but to go straight on. One
suggested turning the morass to our right, as after
reconnoitring he thought he had discovered a track,
which proved to be the right way; and meeting the man
whom Narhar had sent out, he conducted us to the
summit of the hill on which Ahmed-es-Sahoo, the
Shaykh of the whole Weldi tribe, had built himself a
house overlooking the plain of Hafsa, and within a short
distance from the Euphrates.
We arrived just as the storm began. The house was
built somewhat after the plan of an Arab tent. There
were two court-yards : in one was the room where guests
and people of the tribe were received ; in the other
a similar building, the apartments of the Shaykh and
his family. Ahmed-es-Sahoo was ill with fever, so we
were received by his son. The black tents are far
preferable. We stopped here the Sunday. It was cold, with
a very high wind, and it rained heavily until the
afternoon ; we drank tea and coffee alternately to

The Desert of Arabia. 191
keep ourselves warm. The tents of the people were
spread over a wide area. We doctored several of the
people here for minor complaints, and treated our host
for fever, and strolled out in the afternoon over some of
the hills, and from the steep banks looked down upon
the river now running quite a sea. About this spot were
indications of former buildings, remains of foundations
being visible. We saw several mares among the Weldi,
some good animals enough, but none particularly
worthy of note.
Further south, from an undulating country we
emerge upon a fine plain of fine turf, bounded by the
Euphrates. It is called Mellah, and is one of the
favourite summer camping-grounds of the Fadan
Anazah. It has been called the parade-ground of the
Anazah. About six or seven years before we passed
over here, six thousand well-mounted Anazah from
several tribes paraded on Mellah, before crossing the
Euphrates to attack the Shammar Arabs, under the
direction of Jadaan ibn Mahaid.
There are a few detached families of Anazah,
living in their tents, scattered about this part of the
desert among the Weldi ; but the Anazah tribes had
left for the southern part of the desert, or gone to the
Najd. At Messkene, supposed to be the site of the ancient
Balis, which the Turks have taken and made a military
station, barracks have been built Inclosing a large
square. The sentry at the gate presented arms to our

192 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Effendi, but his charger, with utter disregard of courtesy,
refused the salute by going about.
We were received by the commandant, and we asked
his permission to pitch our tents within the barrack
square; he replied we were at liberty to do so, but added
that during our stay we must put up in his quarters.
Here was stationed a mounted infantry corps of some
three hundred men ; they rode mules. Soon after our
arrival, a bugle sounded, and mules galloped into the
square. It was the summons for " mid-day stables ; "
the mules had been feeding loose on the plain outside
the walls.
In the afternoon there was a parade, commanded by
a tall and very thin black ; the commandant told us he
was the best officer he had.
In the evening we messed with the commandant ;
dishes prepared by our respective cooks were served
alternately. We thought the commandant preferred our
fare. The Turks eat their food in a lukewarm state ; the
Badaween eat their food while it is very hot. A young
Greek, the surgeon of the corps, was asked to meet us.
The band played outside during dinner.
Not far from the military station, and by the side of
the river, is a jungle in which, we were informed, were
lions, hyenas, and jackals, and that only a few nights
before our arrival, a lion had been killed by the soldiers,
who, having heard his roar, fired in the direction of the
sound from the roof of their quarters, and the next
morning the body of the lion was found at a short
distance from the walls. We did not see any, but we

The Desert of Arabia. 193
could quite dispense with their company and music, for
truly here was a howling wilderness, and it did not
require their assistance.
An hour or two after dinner, the commandant
bade us good-night, leaving us to repose in his Divan,
probably the only room of any pretension, to put up
himself in some other apartment.
A line of hills, running from about north-west to
south-east across the desert, terminates at a short dis
tance from the river, just north of the barracks. Just
outside the barrack gate is a very fine ruin, consisting
of a large square tower, which had had lower and
upper apertures or windows. There are the vestiges
of a double wall, which appeared to have surrounded
a central tower with towers, and enclosed a large area.
Here Balis, or king Balisis, had a palace, gardens, and
menagerie. At some distance from the ruin, and nearer
the river, is a lofty column, part of which has fallen.
It is seen at the distance of several miles from the
north of Balis ; the other ruins are hidden by the spur
of the hills.
In a lonely barrack built of sun-dried bricks, holding
soldiers of the Sultan of Stamboul, in now a wilderness,
a Greek, a Turk, and three Englishmen sat down to
dinner within sight of the ruins once inhabited, perhaps,
by Syrian kings !
Further down the river, on the opposite side or left
bank, can be seen a mound." It is Kalat Jabar or Castle
Jaber. Following the course of the Euphrates to the south-

194 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
east brings you to Deir, and still further south to Anah.
The former was, until lately, a small fishing village ; it
was taken by the Turks and held by them as a military
station, nominally as a protection against the Badaween.
It has been the cause of many disturbances between the
Arabs and Turks. They come into contact here, they
meet to discuss political matters, and hostile collisions
are not unfrequent. Those who travel from Baghdad
into Syria by the desert, after crossing the Euphrates,
pass by Anah and Deir.
We visited an encampment of the Abu Hamis ; they
are an offshoot from the Anazah, and we were informed
that this was one of the few instances, if not the only
one, of any Anazah having taken to settling. The Abu
Hamis are looked down upon and discarded by their
aristocratic and patriarchal brethren.
We had left the Euphrates, and were in a more
dreary-looking country, with little or no diversity — a
succession of barren undulations. Riding obliquely
across them, ascending and descending, sometimes
hidden from view in the deep wide hollows, we had once
or twice, from the tops of these hills or elevations, caught
sight of a dark line, which was the encampment of the
Abu Hamis, some hours before we arrived there ; but
they were soon hidden from our view, nor did we see
the tents again until we were close upon them.
We found here a few huts which were utilized, and
some of the tents were so 'pitched in connection with
these huts as to form a hollow square, and this, so far
as I remember, was the only occasion on which we saw

The Desert of Arabia. 195
such a formation. It was dark when we arrived, and we
left early in the morning, therefore we saw little of the
Abu Hamis, but we were less favourably impressed than
we had been with others.
Proceeding in rather a north-westerly direction, we
visited the camp of Shaykh Faris-es-Shebah of the
Lebess tribe, which is a branch of the Mowali. Some
portion of this tribe cultivated the land ; certain families
by turn, we understood, spent some time on or about
the land under cultivation. At this place Faris-es-
Shebah and some six families were in residence, and he
was superintending the sowing of the land. In speaking
of cultivated land, my readers must not suppose that
there is any very regular system of cultivation or any
enclosures ; the cultivation is scarcely perceptible in
the surrounding desert ; small patches of land are
lightly ploughed and seed is sown. All around is desert
or wilderness, and at this part the landscape is wild and
the features bold — high round-topped hills of rock or of
sand and shingle, and valleys which wind in and out
round the hills. Both hills and valleys were plentifully
supplied with large stones. Not a tree or shrub was to
be seen here, and no grass, except when we crossed the
pretty little stream Lallah Mohammed again, but at a
different point, and then there was a narrow strip of
verdure on both sides of the clear shallow stream.
With the exception of the Daradax or Jubul river,
which rises in the north and runs into the Lake Jubul, or
the Valley of Salt, in the south, and the river Khalus,
which rises in the Aintab hills, and, after running past

196 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Aleppo is lost in a morass in the desert south of that
city, towards Tadmor, we neither saw nor heard of any
other running water in the desert.
Faris-es-Shebah told us he should be glad when his
term of residence was up, for he greatly preferred a
nomadic life. There was a house here of sun-dried
bricks, in which he was living at this time. When the
operation of sowing was completed, as I understood
the system, he was to depart artd proceed to a warmer
latitude, leaving perhaps some in charge, when either he
or some other portion of the tribe would return to gather
the harvest. Faris-es-Shebah showed us his stallion and
some mares. The horse was a very powerful grey of the
Hededi strain, with a beautiful head and strong neck,
powerful sloping shoulders, a back and loins of extra
ordinary breadth ; was deep in the ribs ; quarters dropped
a little, but powerful. Faris' horse was housed In a
small tent, probably with some human inhabitants. His
own two mares, a grey and a chestnut, blood-like animals,
were, he said, both Anazah, which he had received
from the Anazah in the autumn, when those tribes return
to the Najd for winter : both had recently been deeply
fired and were very lame ; they were stabled in one of the
two or three apartments of the house, and had cradles
and side-sticks to prevent them blemishing themselves.
We saw Faris-es-Shebah In the following summer in
the tents of the Anazah, and he was riding one of these
mares. Besides the horses we were riding, we had another,
a colt under three years of age, of great promise and

The Desert of Arabia, 197
value, which we had been fortunate enough to obtain
from a Badaween in the desert, through the help of
Abd-er-Rakhman, the learned man, and I think also
Shaykh Jassim, before we turned our steps northwards
on our return to Aleppo. He was a magnificent colt,
and met with enthusiastic reception at every camp at
which we stopped. The Anazah horse had never been
inside a building, probably had never seen one before,
and it was a long time before he could be induced to
lower his lofty head and enter the house, but he had
eventually allowed the Shaykh to lead him into the
apartment where were the two mares. This horse was
known by report, we found, at many of the camps we
visited. We asked the opinion of every Shaykh at
whose tent we stopped : " Mashallah ! God has made
him very beautiful ; he has no fault," was the general
verdict. We saw several mares, and some with foals by their
side, which were terribly maimed. One at Shass was
going about over the surrounding hills on her near fore
fetlock joint ; the pasterns and hoofs were turned inwards
and slightly upwards, and the hoof had shrunk to half
its normal size. On another occasion, after leaving the
Lahep, we saw two mares with foals loose and feeding
in the neighbourhood of a small camp. We rode up to
look at them, as they appeared to be fine mares. They
were both fine mares, of good size and shape ; both were
blemished, and one was going upon her near fetlock
joint, but In this instance the pasterns and hoof were
fixed out straight to the front ; yet both these mares

198 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
seemed to get on very well at a walk, and at a little dis
tance it could hardly be noticed that they were lame.
We had hoped at this time to have seen another
Anazah with his horse, who had sought refuge among
the Labep, when his tribe had departed for the south.
Probably some misbehaviour on his part or some quarrel
was the cause of his separation. We were informed that
his tribe had resolved that he and his horse should
return, and if he would not, that at all events the horse
should go back ; a party of Anazah were despatched for
the purpose ; and we were told that the owner had been
killed and that the horse had been taken away. I do
not vouch for the accuracy of the statement ; suffice it to
say we did not see either man or horse. I can only
express the hope the man was not killed ; but the event
is one not unlikely to have happened, for I believe few
Badaween expect or wish to die in their beds. " Would
you have me die in my bed like a Khawajah of Jedaide ? "
said Ahmed Bey, late Shaykh of the Mowali. Never
theless there are some very aged men in the desert.
In returning to Aleppo by a more northern route, we
passed through the town or village of Tadiff, situate at
the summit and extreme eastern point of. a range of
hills. It appeared to be a place of some size; its situation
was imposing. Local tradition gives it historic interest :
it is asserted that it was visited by Ezra, and that he
wrote some of his books there ; it is still a place of
pilgrimage of the Jews. It is comparatively only a
short distance from Balis, to which the Babylonian
empire extended, and where, or in the neighbourhood,

The Desert of Arabia. 199
may have been the forest from which timber was
ordered to be supplied.
It is quite possible that Ezra did visit Tadiff on his
journey from Babylon to Jerusalem ; for, unless he took
a shorter route across the desert — which it is evident he
did not do, for the journey occupied nearly four months—
whether he travelled up the left or right bank of the
Euphrates, Tadiff would be on the direct road to Syria
and Jerusalem.
On the borders of this northern part of the desert
are some twenty-six settlements of Arabs, who, in some
instances, are living in villages — perhaps not whole tribes,
but certain families which, from some cause, have left
their original tribes, and have, for a time at all events,
become settled. Among these there is one colony of
Shammar Arabs from beyond the river, which is, I am
informed, the only instance of any of that people having
a possession on the right of the Euphrates since they
retired across the river before the Anazah.
On leaving one of these Arab settlements, we had to
cross a piece of water, some twelve feet in width, by a
bridge just wide enough for one horseman, constructed
of poles covered with earth. Our colt at this time was
being led by two long ropes between two mounted men,
as he was unshod, and the ground in great part was
thickly covered with square blunt stones, about the size
of eighteen-pounder shot. There are, perhaps, no horses
so shy as the desert Arabian ; he objected to cross the
bridge after one of the horses, but putting down his
nose to see what the water was, he sprang and skimmed

200 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
the water like a swallow, showing promise of a water-
jumper. I have made mention that the horse our Effendi
rode, a strong animal of the Jelfi strain, larked about
under his sixteen stone. Our Effendi could not under
stand it, for on former journeys he had proved himself to
be the steadiest and most sober of horses, being contented
to walk the whole day ; and to temper his exuberant
spirits, our Effendi had ordered his barley to be cut, and
on one day he had only chopped straw. He attributed
his spirits to the exhilarating effect of the desert air,
which doubtless had something to do with it ; but when
we first made the acquaintance of the Jelfan and other
horses of our Effendi, they had just come from a tedious
journey from Antioch, on which the Jelfan had behaved
himself so well ; they were one and all sober-looking
enough, and, although sound, fresh horses, their legs
were pilled up to the knees and hocks. Our Effendi
having put his stable under our united care, we inquired
how much barley the horses had had on their journey,
and found, as we expected, that they had had but little,
or none at times. We immediately granted a liberal
allowance, and by making daily excursions we kept the
four horses in exercise, and in a few days were rewarded
by clean fine legs and abundant spirits. But so annoyed
was our Effendi at the behaviour of his Jelfan, that he
declared he would sell him for whatever he could get in
the bazaar on his return ; and he kept his word.
It so happened at this time that some agents from
Egypt were visiting the towns in Syria to buy horses,

The Desert of Arabia. 201
and as their price, about £25, was rather higher than that
allowed by the Turkish Government, they were enabled
to pick up horses of more or less breeding. That our
Effendi was going to sell an Arab for whatever he would
fetch was soon known, and the Jelfan and two others
were disposed of in a few days at the regulation price.
These horses would figure in Egypt as valuable Arabians.
I mention this occurrence to show how seldom Arab
horses, or horses of Arab blood, are obtained. Not
that I consider these I have mentioned as specimens of
the pure breed of the desert ; I expect they were either
bred in Syria or in some of the bordering villages ; but
they were what are usually seen by travellers and con
sidered as high-class Arabs.
The fine weather broke up on the very night of our
return, and rain descended for several weeks. A friend
whom we met had travelled in haste, on his way to
Europe from Baghdad, by the desert route, crossing the
Euphrates and passing Anah and Deir ; he told us he
met with but one solitary man the whole way, and this
was an Arab horseman, who spent a few hours of the
night by his fire. He offered the Arab food for his
mare, of which the Arab said she had been without for
five days, but that did not much matter, as on the next
day she would have as much as she liked. This seems
to be incredible ; but I expect the Arab said or meant
that the mare had been without barley or any regular
food — in fact, had had nothing but what she nibbled off
the shrubs at such times as he may have dismounted for
rest.

202 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
On another occasion, when returning to Aleppo from
a journey in the desert from the south, we passed the
place where it is said the river Khalus loses itself. In
winter it must have been an immense morass, or perhaps
a mere ; in the hot season it' was quite dry, but the
ground was very lumpy, broken, and full of large fissures
and irregular elevations ; these latter were baked hard
by the sun. It was dank, damp, and chilly as we rode
across this drled-up morass. Beyond, at some distance,
we caught sight of what seemed to be a lake of consider
able size sparkling in the moonlight, and we wondered
whether the waters of the Khalus, after being lost to
sight, might not reappear at some distance ; we were
assured no such lake or piece of water existed, and I
had no time then nor a later opportunity of making
any examination.
As we approach the verge of the desert, although
the country is still entirely open, we are sensible that we
are losing the peculiar light pure air of the desert ; this
becomes more and more perceptible, and, during the last
six or eight hours' ride, may be called palpable. Riding
over the broken ground near villages, many of which were
deserted, and contained ruins of buildings and sites of
greater pretensions, and as we wound, round the large
gardens and cultivated enclosures which almost surround
Aleppo, the atmosphere seemed to be thick, heavy, and
oppressive to breathe. The smell, too, of the city was an
offence in our nostrils. We understood and appreciated
the words of Abd-ul-Karlm, the Shaykh of the Sham
mar, when he told the Turkish governor that " he would
never set his foot in any of their abominable towns."

The Desert of Arabia. 203
We found on our arrival in the Azizieh, outside
Aleppo, a few hours before dawn, that the city was
stricken with cholera and the swallows gone*
* We had formerly watched the flight of swallows, for it is reported
that swallows will not remain in a district where cholera has established
itself.

CHAPTER III.
OF THE BADAWEEN OF ARABIA.
The account given in the chapter on the Joktanic Arabs
in Yaman and Hijaz, of the formation of divers king
doms and states under Arab princes, and of migrations
of families from both Yaman and Hijaz, not only over
the more southern part of the peninsula of the Arabs,
but also to the borders of Syria, and beyond the
Euphrates to the Tigris, will account for the very
strong Arab element in Syria and Erack long before
the era of Mohammed, and also for the tribes of
Badaween (Arabs) to be found in these regions, on the
borders of Syria, the banks of the Euphrates, and as far
as to the Tigris. The large body of Arabians which
attacked Judas when retiring from Joppa, after he
destroyed the port and shipping, with whom he made
peace and they returned to the tents,* may even have
been Banu Salih, who were dispossessed by the Ghassan
Arabs, which last migrated from Yaman about the time
of Alexander of Macedon ; or Banu Amelah, who were
* These were Badaween, and had five hundred horsemen. 2 Mac
cabees xii. 10, n.

9
Of the Badaween of Arabia. 205
also settled near Damascus about that time. Nor
should it be forgotten that when Aurelian made his
weary march from Syria across the desert to attack the
modern Palmyra, his troops were harassed by Badaween
horsemen. It will not fail to be seen that the migra
tions have to a marked degree been northwards and to
the north-east, to the borders of Syria, and to the
neighbourhood of the Euphrates.
The Badaween of Arabia are neither savages nor
barbarians : they are totally unlike the Indians of North
America ; they are not like the early inhabitants of
Greece, who lived in holes in the earth and fed upon
roots and garbage ; they are not poor, miserable out
casts ; and any comparison implied by calling the
neglected street boys of London "Arabs" is monstrously
ridiculous. The tribes of Badaween are very numerous,
some poorer, some very rich and powerful ; collectively
they are a great, free, rich, pastoral, and at the same
time a warlike people, and have no exact parallel in
history. The Badaween have laws of their own, a
traditional code of morality strictly kept, a policy as
between tribe and tribe, and a system of government
in each tribe, and alliances, which are faithfully
observed. Besides single tribes, small or great, each
under the guidance and rule of its own Shaykh, there
are confederations of tribes, over which the Shaykh of
one particular tribe holds, to a considerable extent,
great influence, if not actually supreme authority.
Such a Shaykh can summon the others to councils

206 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
for deliberation, or collect the tribes of the confederation
for war.
There are many families which have become so
numerous or important that they constitute tribes within
their own parent tribe ; some of these have separated
from the parent tribe and formed confederations ; yet,
after the lapse of generations, intercourse and alliances
with their ancestral people are kept up.
We were informed that the Shaykhs of these con
federations address each other as " cousin," which is not
the custom among Shaykhs, who are not thus bound
together. But among some tribes and confederations
there is perpetual and hereditary hostility ; such, for
instance, exists not only between the whole race of
Anazah and the Shammar Arabs, but between every
individual Anazah and Shammar Arab. Some tribes
which are less powerful, especially those who are
to some extent located in the northern parts of the
desert, ally themselves with greater tribes, according
to circumstances, to which they pay tribute, calling it
" Hoaa," or the fee of brotherhood. By this arrange
ment the weak tribes have the benefit and right of pro
tection when attacked by tribes hostile to the protecting
tribe. The tribute or fee is never paid in money, but in
camels and sheep, formally assessed by a tax in propor
tion to the wealth of the tribe, and levied according to
the means or standing of each member of the tributary
tribe, by order of the Shaykh. Horses and mares are
not given as tribute. The fiscal arrangements are con
ducted with marked equity, and complaints are never or
seldom made.

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 207
The Badawee, although free and independent in
thought and action, and ill brooking restraint, has great
respect for his laws. When the Shaykh enters his
tent, where scores of his people may be collected (they
look upon the Shaykh's tent as a kind of club), they
all rise to receive him, and only sit down again upon
being told by him to do so. When he is once seated,
he rarely rises to receive any one. I heard that a
singular exception to this custom exists, and that the
mark of respect of rising is usually shown to the pos
sessor of any celebrated mare, when such a one enters
the tent of the Shaykh.
Any one, even an enemy, Is safe if he touch but the
tent-rope, whether it be that of a tent of a hostile tribe,
or of a personal enemy. The owner of the tent then
becomes his host, and it is his duty to defend his guest
against every foe and to administer to his wants.
Were two personal foes or men of hostile tribes to
meet, the conqueror would take the mare of the man
who had been wounded, dismounted, overcome, or had
surrendered. But touching the tent-rope Is not only
the guarantee for personal safety, but "secures the mare
to the owner. An inveterate foe may thus, either
when travelling or when pursued, obtain shelter and
hospitality, and ride away in safety ; and although this
does not prevent a renewal of hostilities at any future
time, yet it must often tend to soften animosity, and
perhaps turn former enemies into friends.
The institution of "Dhoahel," or surrender, is humane ;
it prevents the shedding of blood, without depriving the

208 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
conqueror of the spoils. When a man surrenders, the
conqueror unwinds his Akal, i.e. the rope, generally
of camel's hair, with which the Badaween fasten the
Kaffiyeh to their head, and throws it over the head of
the surrendered. In a general fight between two tribes
there may be many such instances of surrender ; and if
one who has surrendered himself should be threatened
or attacked, his captor protects him, which he can do
with his lance ; for as firearms are not in use among the
Badaween, attacks are personal encounters, and wounds
are not inflicted by chance. The real armour of the
Badaween horseman, offensive and defensive, is the
speed of his mare.
The office of Shaykh is not hereditary — there may
be exceptions, such as is the case in the Mowali tribe —
but is usually held for life. When a Shaykh dies, his heir
may be set aside, and the most worthy or popular man
in the tribe appointed his successor ; it is generally
some member of the late Shaykh's family. The power
of the Shaykh is, I believe, absolute, but he may be
deposed. He makes war or concludes peace, levies taxes,
and administers justice.
A Shaykh is generally a wealthy man, so that he may
be able to exercise hospitality to strangers, and help or
maintain the poor of his tribe ; but there are some
notable exceptions. In certain tribes there are persons
of acknowledged penetration in legal matters, and such,
by common consent, are allowed to act as judges. A
case was told us of a powerful Shaykh coming before
one of these desert judges, to try a cause against a

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 209
member of his own tribe, and the award was given in
favour of the latter. It was a question of the right of
possession of a mare which had been taken in a fight,
the particular strain of blood or family to which the
mare belonged being a perquisite of the Shaykh. The
judge ruled that such privileges could only be enjoyed
by right of concession ; as the office of Shaykh was held
by popular election, he could not maintain his preroga
tives when they were opposed by his electors. The
Shaykh gave up the mare without a reply.
The Akeed is the'military leader of a tribe; he is also
elected for life by popular vote. The two chiefs, the
Shaykh and Akeed, rule in turn, as their tribe may be at
peace or war. But there are instances of both offices
being vested in the same person, as in the case of Ahmed,
the late Shaykh of the Mowali, and Jadaan ibn Mahaid
of the Fadan (Anazah). When war is declared, the Akeed
takes command of the tribe ; when peace is concluded,
the Shaykh resumes his power. It has sometimes hap
pened that a military expedition has been undertaken
for the sole purpose of getting rid, for a time, of the rule
of a Shaykh who may have made himself obnoxious.
This is speedily effected ; a party sallying forth to
capture flocks or camels from the intended enemy,
reprisals are made, and the unpopular Shaykh is obliged
to declare war, and hand over his tribe to the Akeed.
Polygamy is rare among the Badaween, but divorces
are frequent. The Badaween are very kind to their
children. Although a warlike people, they are not
naturally aggressive, but wonderfully tenacious, and,
P

210 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
except under the influence of great excitement — such as
was the case after the death of Mohammed, when a
series of rapid and brilliant victories enabled the Arabs
to establish an empire of almost unrivalled extent — the
Badaween are more inclined to hold their own than to
become a dominating race, nor does It seem probable
that the Badaween could ever be collected and bound
together to form a kingdom under one sovereign head.
Yet a free, generous people, which have followed the
same course of pastoral life for ages, of wealth sufficient
for their wants, and strong enough to resist all ag
gression, Is not to be contemned by those who have
followed agriculture and commerce, nor can whole tribes
and families of a " great nation " be counted as out
casts, or stigmatized as homeless vagabonds. Their in
telligence is undeniable, their perception quick, their
imagination lively, their wit keen. Without book learning,
their Semitic instinct is a substitute for the acquired
learning of more civilized peoples, is sufficient to cope
with political intrigues, and in difficult and delicate
matters of diplomacy is more than a match for those
who would entangle them. Such tribes as have either
wholly or partially taken to cultivate the soil are not
to be compared with their strictly nomadic brethren in
prosperity or standing. One who accompanied us on
our visit to the Badaween, and had used his influence to
induce some to settle, to exchange their mares for
ploughs, and had supplied them with money for seed,
exclaimed with sorrow, " I question if what I have done
has been for their welfare."

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 211
In winter small tribes or families of Badaween, who
are not able to migrate to warmer latitudes and more
sheltered districts, approach the border towns of Syria
and other districts, and pitch their tents in void places
outside the precincts of such towns.
The Badaween, for the convenience of description
only, may be divided into three classes : those who
migrate but little, and are to be found in the desert
bordering upon Yaman, Hijaz, Palestine and Syria, and
along the right bank of the Euphrates ; those who have
crossed the Euphrates ; and those who migrate or roam
all over the deserts. To those who migrate but little
must be added the Badaween of the Najd and central
provinces of Arabia. Mr. Burckhardt states, "Of all the
Badaween tribes that exist in Arabia, some few families
at least may be found in Najd, to whom refugees fly
for security against their enemies." This is, I think,
quite correct in the main, but it must not be taken
as a proof that the Badaween all spring from the Najd.
After the tide of immigration from both Yaman and
Najd had taken place, there may have been a reflux of
families from certain tribes to Najd, and in some
instances the migration of a tribe can be traced from
Yaman to Mosul, from which certain families have been
left at different and intermediate points. Take for in
stance the Tay tribe. But, on the other hand, Mr. Burck
hardt says that all the inhabitants of Najd trace their
origin to some ancient Badaween tribe. The tribes of
Badaween now located in the northern part of the desert
between Syria and the Euphrates, are not so powerful

212 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
as they were before the later great migration from
Central Arabia took place, some two centuries ago,
which has been the means of depriving the former
tribes of the greater part of their spring and summer
pasture. Before the migration of the Shammar Arabs from
Jabal Shammar, the Mowali were probably the most
powerful and most warlike tribe in the northern desert,
and offered a most stubborn resistance to the Shammar \
finally being worsted, they lost much of their importance,
and their migrations became restricted to the desert east
of the borders of Syria.
We heard at Aleppo the following account of the
Mowali ; though at variance with the history of their
origin from the Hijaz, there may be some founda
tion of a romantic character for the tale. It is stated
that the Emperor Justinian discovered in a slave the
last known descendant of the Abasaide Khalifs ; he was
made free, and a tribe was formed by collecting scattered
families and individuals in the desert, to which he was
appointed Shaykh. The ruling Shaykh in the Mowali
tribe has the Turkish title of Bey, and we were in
formed that the office of Shaykh in this tribe is hereditary.
The title of Bey was bestowed upon a lineal successor
of the first Shaykh, the liberated captive of the house of
Abas, by Sultan Amaruth, who induced the Mowali-
Shaykh to assist him in his expedition to Irak Arabi,
which is now called Turkish Arabia, east of the
Euphrates, and at the same time presented the Arab
Bey with an egret plume studded with a diamond, and>

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 213
which gave rise to the name still borne by the Shaykh's
family — Banu Rishi, " sons of the plume."
It was towards the close of the struggle for supremacy
between the Mowali and the Shammar, which had lasted
for fifty or sixty years, that a disgraceful and shameful
event took place. As related to us, Assafuk, i.e. Al-Safuk,
the powerful Shaykh of the Shammar Arabs, who had
brought them up from Jabal Shammar, proposed to the
Mowali a treaty of peace ; and to arrange the question
of rights to pastures, and to guarantee the possession of
such in future to each tribe, a meeting was proposed.
Mohammed al-Harfan, Shaykh of the Mowali, invited
eighteen persons of distinction in the Shammar tribe to
meet a like number of the Mowali. The Shammar were
received with every apparent mark of respect, and with
general rejoicings, but after a plentiful repast were
shamefully massacred. The memory of this act of
treachery has been kept in remembrance by the words
still often repeated in the desert, " Bayt al-Mowali, Bayt
al-Ayb " — " The house of the Mowali is the abode of
infamy." The advantages gained by the Shammar over
the Mowali and other tribes were not held by them in
undisputed enjoyment. Certain tribes of Anazah, a
great people, the most prevailing of the Badaween
families, by the vastly increased numbers of their herds
and want of sufficient pasturage, were induced to extend
their migrations ; and meeting with the Shammar, their
hereditary foes, a system of perpetual war was carried on,
until the Shammar were deprived of the pasture grounds
they had obtained, and were finally obliged to retire

214 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
across the Euphrates into Al-Jazirah, as the country
between the Euphrates and Tigris is called by the
Arabs. The Mowali became useful to the Anazah from
their knowledge of the country, so we were informed, and
became their allies, and receive protection from the
Anazah. This has somewhat raised the Mowali from
their fallen condition.
The late Shaykh of the Mowali, who was Akeed or
military leader of the tribe during the rule of his elder
brother Aurif Bey, described as a quiet amiable man,
succeeded his brother as next of kin, and retained the
office of Akeed. Ahmed Bey was a great warrior, and
his fame was widely spread. In appearance he was
fully six feet in height, with broad shoulders, very
muscular and finely developed limbs ; his face was
handsome, although the features were large and rather
hard, his complexion fair, but darkened by exposure to
the sun and weather. He was very careless of his
personal appearance. He was bold, courageous, and
dashing, perhaps cruel, but not mercenary. He kept a
big stick in his tent with which to chastise delinquents.
Ahmed Bey was always well mounted ; he usually
kept five or six mares for his own riding ; on an ex
pedition one, two, or three of these were led after him
by attendants on dromedaries. His lance, of unusual
weight and length, the head or blade engrained with
silver, was carried after him by a follower on horse
back ; while a formidable mace, to which weapon he
was very partial, hung from his own saddle. Our
friend to whom I am indebted for this sketch of

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 215
a celebrated character of the desert, when bathing
in company with Ahmed Bey in the Euphrates,
noticed he was covered with scars, and remarked that
he supposed he had had enough of fighting. Ahmed
Bey replied, " Would you have me die In a bed like
a Khawajah of Jedaide ? " (equivalent to "Would you
have me die like a well-to-do citizen of a town ? ") " No,
I will die on the back of my mare." Ahmed Bey, about
two years afterwards, was killed from his mare's back, in
a fight between his own tribe, and some Rualla, at the
age of some forty years. We frequently saw a mare
which had been his, a splendid weight-carrying chestnut,
with a remarkably keen eye and a sharply cut nostril,
of unusual length and capacity. Mamoud Bey, his
cousin, succeeded him. He had been to Constantinople,
and had served two years in the Sultan's body-guard.
Mamoud Bey we knew personally, and met frequently.
Unlike his cousin in the particular of his dress, he was
very neat and scrupulous in his attire, his white under
clothing being spotless, which was surmounted by a
plain black Aba (cloak). Mamoud Bey is in the prime
of life, tall, frank, but courteous in his manners, and with
the address of a gentleman.
We saw him on one occasion placed in very trying
circumstances In the desert, negotiating with enemies
(Turks), and at the time only half trusted by his friends
and allies ; but he acted with discretion and judgment,
and was true to the Arab cause and his friends.
The Mowali are on the western side of the desert.
Burckhardt says that the Mowali tribe is originally from

216 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
the Hijaz ; it lived in the neighbourhood of Madina, and
is often mentioned by the historians of that town, during
the first century after Mohammed.
" Mowali," signifying lords or princes, is the plural of
" Mowla," a prince, sovereign, lord, or judge. The title
may mark some connection with the tribe or even
family of Mohammed, or even its origin from the Abas
family. At the same time, the account current at
Aleppo may be true so far as the story of the Shaykh
is concerned ; and the appointment of the last known
descendant of the house of Abas may really have been
restoring him to his own people, and as far as possible
to ancestral honours. I only regret that I did not make
inquiry from the Mowali themselves on this point, but
although of some interest, there were other matters of
greater importance which required attention.
The Haddideen has always been a peaceable and
wealthy tribe ; the men are exclusively shepherds, not
warriors. The late Shaykh Tsherk was a great diplo
matist, and being well versed In the customs of the
Turks, his aid was often asked by the proudest Shaykhs
when they were in any difficulty or complication with
the Turks, and he was generally a successful mediator.
The Weldi is a large tribe of great wealth ; they
have partly taken to agriculture. They dwell on both
sides of the Euphrates, and their camps are to be found
along the right bank of the river, two days below Mess-
kene. This tribe was formerly in Mesopotamia, and
forms an instance of a return of tribes who had migrated
beyond the Euphrates. I expect they commenced to

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 2 1 7
recross after the Shammar were established in Mesopo
tamia. Selami Eddendeen was the Shaykh of the whole
tribe of Weldi. There are two other Shaykhs in this
tribe, besides one or more of inferior standing — one,
Mohammed al-Ghanin, who with several families of the
Weldi crossed to the right bank of the Euphrates not
many years ago, and his uncle, Ahmed-es-Sahor, who is
also on the right bank. The families on the left bank of
the Euphrates still hold allegiance to the Weldi Shaykh,
but have to pay fee to the Shammar Arabs of Al-Jazirah,
and some of the Anazah are generally the protectors of
the Weldi on the right bank ; but all families of Bada
ween who take to cultivation on the borders of the
desert have, I understand, the nominal protection of
the Turkish Government, which is often an additional
cause of war between the Turks and desert tribes. We
heard that Mohammed al-Ghanin was a very fine and a
very handsome man ; but when we visited the Weldi he
was at Mekka, and we were entertained by his son
Jassim and his brothers. Such portions of this tribe
as take to agriculture generally unite under the direc
tion of one man, who becomes a sub-Shaykh, holding
allegiance to the Shaykh of the whole tribe ; and this
is doubtless the custom in other tribes.
The Abghedat is a wealthy tribe ; the people are
both pastoral and agricultural in their pursuits, and still
dwell in tents. Their Shaykh, Fares ibn Mohammed,
was rich and had numerous flocks and herds.
The Beni Khalid is said to be a numerous tribe, which
has spread from Hassa to many parts of the desert.

2 1 8 Gleanings from the Dese7't of Arabia.
The Ferdoon and Ghes tribes are now much reduced ;
and the Lahep is an offshoot from the Mowali, which
has taken to agriculture in part. They grow some grain,
but are still nomadic.
The Sohni tribe is numerous. The people are carriers
and possessed of some wealth ; they provide the camels
for the caravans between Baghdad and Aleppo. Some
of the Sohni employ themselves by burning ligneous
herbs in the desert, for the production of soda or alkali.
The ashes are brought by the Sohni to the towns of
Syria for sale.
The Banu Said, although a small tribe, pride them
selves upon being one of the most ancient in the north
of Arabia. They neither engage in trade nor follow
agricultural pursuits. They do not breed horses, as they
are not possessed of mares, and present an exception to
the general Arab custom ; for they ride horses instead of
mares, which they obtain from other tribes. We were in
formed that they were hard riders, using up a great number
of horses from excessive hard work. Their Shaykh was
one Tamer, of great renown as a warrior, who contributed
greatly by his tall and athletic form and dashing bravery
to the success of many of the raids made by the Banu
Said. Their country is north of Shass, on the right
bank of the Euphrates. (See also account of the Saad
family among the descendants of Madhej, of the posterity
of Kahlan, the son of Abd Shems.)
The Subha is still a powerful tribe, but not so
numerous as the Weldi ; they hold the right bank of
the Euphrates below the Weldi. Some families grow

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 219
enough grain for their own consumption ; they have
large flocks of sheep and herds of camels ; their horses
are thought to be moderately good. They are constantly
at war with the Shammar Arabs of Al-Jazirah, and on
that account are protected by the Anazah, who en
deavour to keep them sufficiently strong to resist the
attacks of the Shammar, if they attempt to cross the
Euphrates. Al-Glat was once a powerful tribe, but has now fallen
to a very poor estate, and is possessed of nothing but
a few sheep. Al-Medjadama, Al-Bala, Al-Meshahada,
Al-Basheikh, Al-Basallm, are small tribes of little note ;
they possess a few horses and sheep, but have no
military reputation.
The Hernadi, a warlike people, are a branch of the
Koraish tribe of Mekka. They emigrated to Egypt on
account of a prolonged famine, and were brought to the
eastern boundary of Syria by Ibrahim Pasha, after he
had conquered the country, in the hopes of protecting
Syria from the attacks of the Badaween from the desert ;
for at one time they overran the plain of Antioch and
fed their herds on Bakkah, the fine plain between
Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon. To effect this the Her
nadi were stationed on a line of posts from Aleppo to
Damascus and to Jerusalem. The scheme did not
answer very well, for the Hernadi gradually became
friends with their brethren of the desert. The family of
Batran, the late Shaykh, who commanded these out
posts and was styled "governor of the desert," and a
portion of the tribe are near Lake Jubul, and many of

220 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
the Hernadi are employed by the local government in
Syria as irregular horse.
The Aghel, once a powerful, now much degenerated,
but still a numerous tribe, are carriers, and have large
herds of camels. Individuals of this tribe travel all
over Arabia as agents, or pedlars, as we should call
them. Many Arabs of different tribes, who are sepa
rated from their own tribes or districts, appear to go
under the name of Aghel ; and Burckhardt says that
many of the Agheli of Baghdad are from Najd, and that
all Arabians settled in the suburbs of Baghdad are com
prised under the name of Aghel. A good deal of the
business of the desert is probably conducted by them
from some of these causes, and speculators or dealers
who supply the dealers in India with horses have re
course to the assistance of the Aghel.
Obaid and Tay are ancient and still powerful tribes ;
they formerly occupied the district between Central
Arabia and the Euphrates, but the greater part of these
tribes, having crossed the river before the Shammar
Arabs, are now in the neighbourhood of Mosul, and if
the Anazah propose to attack the Shammar, they some
times induce the Obaid and Tay to create a diversion in
their favour by threatening the rear of the Shammar.
They are rich in live stock, and sell a large quantity of
wool at Mosul. The ancient Tay can be traced by suc
cessive steps across the peninsula from Yaman to the
Tigris, for which see the account of the Tay in the
history of the Joktanic Arabs.
The Montifitsh, Al-Hindi, and Slaid are tribes of Irak

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 221
or Turkish Arabia further south, and it is doubtful if
they should be classed among the tribes of Arabia. Of
the Montifitsh many families are fishermen, and pursue
their occupation in the numerous canals in that part of
the country ; others cultivate the land. They breed
horses, but it is more than doubtful if the blood is pure.
The desert Arabs do not consider their horses to be of
pure blood, nor of the genuine race ; and to say of a horse,
" He is like an Iraki," i.e. a horse of the Irak tribes, is a
term of reproach similar to that used in Syria, "Your
horse is no better than a Kadisch" (a common Turkish
horse). Baghdad, the Turks generally, the Sultan, and
the Indian market are largely supplied with horses from
this people.
Al-Hindi, it is thought, came from Hindustan ; the
name would give good reason for the supposition. Tra
dition says that some of the sons of Joktan did pass
out of Arabia and settled in Hindustan, but I have not
ascertained that their origin is to be traced to that
source. The people are wealthy and numerous ; they live
in tents. They sow their lands, after which they wander
about to pasture their flocks, and return to reap the
harvest. Slaid is a small tribe which cultivate the soil and are
chiefly known for their breed of large white asses, which
are much used by the townsmen In Syria.
The Shammar Badaween, led up from Jabal Shammar
by a Shaykh of the name of Sofuk, after much resist
ance from the tribes which had previously occupied the

222 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
northern part of the desert, and especially from the
Mowali, finally obtained the supremacy, but were, in
turn, forced to cross the Euphrates by the advance of
certain tribes of the Anazah.
The Shammar Badaween are divided into four great
tribes : Jerba of Mohammed-es-Sofuk is one half of the
Jerba tribe, which remained under the rule of the eldest
son of the Sofuk, who left the Shammar from Central
Arabia and was assassinated by the Mowali, and
occupied the northern part of Al-Jazirah; Jerba of
Ferhan-es-Sofuk is the other half of the tribe, which
held the more southern half of Al-Jazirah ; the
Fadagha and Salama are two divisions of the Shammar
Badaween, who frequent the country extending from
Orfah to the range of hills through which the river
Khabour flows, called Sindjari on the north-east, and
Aziz on the south-west. These, I believe, are more fre
quently in collision with the tribes of Anazah than are
the Jerba.
The Shammar are, as has been related, inveterate
and hereditary foes of the Anazah. They have also had
many dissensions among themselves, and much blood
has been shed from jealousy and ambition to obtain
the chief power. This, I think, is in a great measure
occasioned by their nearness to the Turkish territory ;
quarrels and attacks' have been fostered and instigated
by the Pashalics of Mosul and Baghdad, to lessen and
weaken the power of the Badaween, and to get them
under their control, if not to get rid of them altogether.
The Es-Sofuk family has always been conspicuous

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 22

o

for its power and ambition for the ruling supremacy.
Abd-ul-Karim, "Abd-ul the honourable," a lineal de
scendant of the first Shaykh of the Jerba, son of the
Sofuk who brought the tribes from Jabal Shammar,
was a great chief and styled Emir al-Bara, "Emir of
the desert." He was, I have heard, as much noted for his
honourable conduct and magnanimous character as for
his princely magnificence.
From some family feud or a quarrel of a political
nature, Abd-ul-Karim left his own people, and had been
brought up from early boyhood in the Mahaid family
of the Fadan Anazah, and he ever remained a true and
constant friend to Jadaan ibn Mahaid, the son of the
Shaykh of the Fadan and the companion of his youth ;
and when they afterwards became Shaykhs of their
tribes, their personal friendship remained unchanged
even when their tribes were at war. On one occasion,
when the Fadan Anazah had inflicted some loss upon
the Shammar, a messenger arrived from the Shammar,
bringing Jadaan the mare of Abd-ul-Karim, and de
livered this message : that as he, Abd-ul-Karim, in
tended to be revenged upon the Fadan, he begged
Jadaan to take his mare and ride her, as she was the
fastest mare among the Shammar, and would carry him
out of the way of all pursuit.
We were informed that about the year 1 864, when a
Turkish governor-general visited Abd-ul-Karim, the
Shammar Shaykh kept the Turkish governor waiting at
his tent before admitting him to his presence, and then
received him without rising (probably he had come

224 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
without announcing his intended visit). On leaving, the
governor invited the Arab Shakyh to return his visit ;
but Abd-ul-Karim replied, " I have nothing to do with
you Turks ; if you want me you must come to my tent.
I will never set foot in one of your abominable towns."
In 1872, after Abd-ul-Karim had defeated a large
force of Turkish regular troops, who had attacked the
Arabs, so we were informed, without provocation, upon
which occasion one battalion of the Turkish force was
literally cut down to a man by the Shammar horsemen,
he was betrayed by his secretary, an Armenian, surprised
when asleep, and taken prisoner by the Turks. Abd-ul
Karim, the generous friend and magnanimous foe, was
bound to the back of a mule, and escorted to Mosul by
a large force of Turkish soldiers, and finally hanged from
the bridge of Mosul by order of the Turkish Government
at Constantinople. The Anazah form the greatest and most powerful
portion of the Badaween population of Arabia. There
is some misconception with regard to this great people ;
several authors and writers describe them as a tribe.
They are often spoken of as the tribe Anase, and some
think or infer that there are two separate or distinct races
or families of Anazah. Many have been betrayed into
this error.
The Anazah, instead of being a simple tribe, are a
great people, a separate or distinct family of the great
Arab race, the most numerous and influential of all the
Badaween, and are dwellers in the desert and nomadic
in the strictest and fullest acceptance of these terms.

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 225
They may not inaptly be called the aristocracy of Arabia.
Their history dates back to a very early period. Their
ancestor, or the founder of the family, was Anazah, the
son of Asad, the son of Rabiah al-Faras, who was the
third son of Nazar, the son of Maad, the son of Ak,
the son of Adnan (see the line of descent from Kidar).
Banu Anazah; the sons and descendants of Anazah,
were settled at, or were the inhabitants of, Khaibar, in
the desert between the provinces of Hijaz and Najd,
considered by the Badaween a part of the Najd. There,
as a distinct and separate Arab family, history leaves
them for many ages, nor does the family appear to have
taken any part in affairs outside their own country or
immediate neighbourhood. Their numbers increased,
as did their herds and flocks, and as they increased, so
they extended their migrations, and became in time pos
sessed of the principal part of the pastures from the
coast of Hassa on the Persian Gulf to Hijaz, and of
most of the important wells, many of which belong of
right to the Anazah at the present day. To this pre
vailing people, up to the time when the Wahabees estab
lished a settled government in the Najd, the beginning of
this century, belonged exclusively the pastures of Najd ;
but considerably before that period so greatly had the
wealth of the Anazah increased, that some families com
menced to migrate to the northern part of the desert to
obtain pasture, which rarely fails. Migrations continued,
and thus, Instead of feeding their herds during the
spring in the Najd as formerly, a very considerable
portion of the Anazah race pasture theirs in the deserts'
Q

226 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
between Syria and the Euphrates, and return to the
south for winter ; and this has also afforded them greater
opportunities for collecting grain and other commodities,
which they formerly obtained from the resident popula
tion of Central Arabia, from small Arab villages or
settlements on the borders of the desert, whose inhabit
ants, as Mr. Burckhardt says, were petty merchants as
well as agriculturists and cultivators of palm trees, and
who supplied their wandering brethren with goods which
they obtained from the towns of Syria and Arabia.
Now they can barter for grain and such goods as they
may require with the merchants of the border towns of
Syria, such as Damascus, Hamah, Horns, and Aleppo,
which are now more accessible to them than Mekka or
Jeddah. Different tribes of Anazah have their own
distinct pastures, and trade with different towns, so that
their interests do not generally clash. This extended
circuit of migration had, however, the effect of bringing
them into connection with the Turks. Before trade can
be carried on between the Anazah and the merchants,
certain terms have to be arranged with the Turkish
officials, which are often, and perhaps with justice, con
sidered hard and extortionary by the Badaween. The
Badaween will not always submit to these terms,. and
trade suffers in consequence. I have been told that the
profits accruing to the merchants of Aleppo alone, from
the trade with the desert tribes, have amounted to
^50,000 a year, but are now very much less. Some years
little or no trade is done, as the Anazah, after having
consumed the pasturage, move off, suffering privations

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 227
themselves rather than submit to extortion. They can,
perhaps, buy grain to some extent from their Badaween
brethren who are on the borders of Syria and along the
Euphrates, and from the country of the lower part of the
river they lay in a supply of dates.
These restrictions and extortions made by the
Turkish Government are, I think, frequently" the cause
of many of the disturbances, sometimes ending in
collision between the Arabs and the Turks ; for the
Badaween are not slow to avail themselves of any
Opportunity to evade or avoid the exactions imposed
upon them ; but, besides this, the Arab and Turk are
antagonistic to each other. The innate pride of race
and exclusive superiority of the Semite, found in their
fulness among the Anazah, cause them to look down
upon and to contemn the Turk of Japhethic race.
Although, I believe, often oppressive and exacting,
the Turks are not always the gainers by these measures
of prohibition to trade. It. is often customary for the
Arabs to place, as pledges of good faith, certain numbers
of camels in the hands of the Turks ; should any breach
of contract take place, or the pledges not be restored,
the Badaween will hang about, or revisit the neighbour
hood unexpectedly, and sweep away their property, with
possibly some addition, which only, however, leads to
greater complications and more disagreements for
future years;; so that the policy between Arabs and
Turks does not improve.

The extended migrations of the Anazah have been

228 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
continual and increasing. The tribes which first migrated
have, perhaps, become more predatory or essentially
warlike, to the exclusion of their pastoral life, than
some of the later migrations ; the former had to fight
their way and to establish their supremacy ; at all
events, it is probable the least wealthy of these tribes
were the first to make the venture. Some of these,
which are smaller tribes, do not, at all seasons or in
all years, return south or to the Najd for winter, but
are almost as localized as some of the other Badaween
in the northern desert ; but the greater tribes, who have
large herds, do return to the south, and there are
instances of whole tribes which have for a series of
years migrated to the north, returning to the south for
good ; and in the annual return of other tribes the same
families do not always return — some remain, and others
take their place ; but as a rule, like the swallow, the
Anazah are annually migratory. It must be understood
that, long before their advance into the northern desert,
the Anazah tribes were distributed over a very large
portion of Central Arabia, and from these, again, new or
other tribes have sprung. Thus, Ibn Haddul, now often
spoken of as a great separate tribe, sprang, with others,
from the Bisher, who were Anazah occupying the
eastern part of the desert of Central Arabia towards
Hassa on the Persian Gulf. Among the Anazah as a race,,
and especially among certain tribes, are to be found the:
best Arabian horses. This is an acknowledged fact
throughout Arabia and among all Badaween ; but as
the Arabian horse will form the subject of a separate-
part, more is not stated now.

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 229
There are two great divisions, perhaps three, of the
Anazah race : the Bisher, the Walud Ali, and the
Jelas. There are several tribes from the Bisher and
Walud Ali ; from the Jelas, as far as I know, only one
important branch, the Rualla. From the Mekran, a
branch of the Messalyke Anazah (a collateral family
with the Walud Ali), came Abd-ul-Wahab, the preacher
of a cleansed religion of Islam ; while from the union by
marriage of an Ibn Sawood of the Walud Ali with the
daughter of Abd-ul-Wahab, the preacher, came the Ibn
Sawood family, which rules over the Wahabis in Central
Arabia. The Badaween informed us that the dispersion of
the Anazah tribes had its origin in Wayel, a very
great Shaykh of the Anazah. Wayel would seem to
have been almost as great a man and as prosperous as
the patriarch Job ; his riches, his flocks and herds, in
creased beyond his most sanguine expectations, which
necessitated the occupation of a much wider extent of
country than the neighbourhood of Khaibar, the original
home of the Anazah race, afforded. Wayel had only
one son, Anaaz ; Anaaz had three sons, Bisher, Mejilis,
and Wahab ; Bisher had two sons, Mefda and Sabaah ;
and, as we understood the Badaween, the principal tribes
of Anazah are descended from Wayel. Thus, from
Mefda, one son of Bisher, have sprung the Fadan tribes of
Anazah; from Sabaah the Sabaah tribes; from Mejilis
the Jelas ; and from Wahab the Messalyke and Al-
Hessene, and, I think, Walud Ali.
The Bisher, for the most part, went eastwards,

230 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
stretching across Najd towards Hassa ; in fact, "pre
viously to the Wahab establishment the pasturage of Nejd
belonged exclusively to the Anezes." * The Walud Ali
and a portion of the Bisher remained in the neigh
bourhood of Khaibar, but Mr. Burckhardt says, " The
land and the palm trees belong to the Walud Ali;"*
the Messalyke and Al-Hessene in the neighbouring
deserts ; and the Mekkan branch in Najd, near Derageh,
the former capital. When the migration of the Anazah
tribes extended to the northern part of the desert,
they again came into collision with the Shammar.
The conflict between these hereditary foes was fierce,
but the Anazah maintained their supremacy, and
the Shammar withdrew across the Euphrates ; but hos
tilities still go on from time to time. Although the
Anazah as a race are a great pastoral people, there is
some difference between many of the tribes : some are
more numerous, more wealthy, and more regular in their
migrations ; others less wealthy, and, if not more warlike,
are more often at war, and more uncertain or erratic in
their migrations. Of course, there are many other tribes
of Anazah of less note, besides those descended from
Wayel ; some who have remained in Najd, and some who,
having migrated, are almost confined to the desert east
of Palestine and Southern Syria, migrating but to shorter
distances. These last are small tribes or sections of
tribes, or in some instances it may be they are only
families which have left their original tribes, and, it is
hardly necessary to say, present the least favourable
* J. Lewis Burckhardt's " Travels in Arabia."

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 231
type of the Anazah family, but are those more often
seen by travellers, who should not judge of a great
people from what may be seen of a small portion.
The Walud Ali are an important family of Anazah ;
they were originally from Khaibar and the neighbouring
desert. Other Anazah tribes are associated with them,
but Burckhardt says the soil and the date plantations
there belong to the Walud Ali. The position they held
at Khaibar rendered them masters of the Haj, or pilgrim
route, from Syria. Their migration extended as far north
as, Damascus and the Harun, to the neighbourhood of
which they proceed in the spring for the twofold pur
pose of taking advantage of the abundant supply of
water and pasture, and of obtaining grain for winter
consumption. The period of their stay depends upon
the season and how long the pasture lasts ; they often
pass the hot season in the Harun, but this cannot be
depended on, for in the end of June or beginning of July
we found they had departed for Moab. Their migration
to the north gave them increased power over the pilgrim
route, and enabled them to hold the whole length from
Damascus to where it passes Khaibar, a distance of only
a few hours. The Turkish authorities and their troops
were quite unable to cope with them successfully, and
eventually paid a handsome yearly tribute to the
Shaykhs to keep open the route to Mekka and to
protect the caravans. The Walud Ali have the
character of being rapacious and predatory, and have
always been a source of trouble and anxiety to the
Damascus authorities— but this is what their enemies say

232 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of them. Still there can be no doubt they stand out for,
and insist upon, their desert right, as they consider it is,
to exact tolls or take in kind. It was the Walud Ali
who, with the Bani Sahar, by their impetuous charge
defeated the French troops, under the brave Kleber,
and drove them to the very gates of Acre. This was
commonly asserted.
They have often fine horses, but their object is
to be well mounted rather than to be large breeders.
Their Shaykh, Mohammed ed Douhi, is a man of
considerable renown. There are different opinions as to
his character ; some say he is crafty and subtle rather
than open and generous : that he should be so to some
extent, from his intercourse with the Turks, is but neces
sary, and it would not be fair to judge of a man from
the character his antagonist gives him. We were agree
ably surprised, and found him courteous, frank, and
willing to oblige. In person he was not above middle
height, not stout, but certainly not meagre, a handsome
face, most intelligent countenance, and evidently pos
sessed of a keen and inquiring mind. He noticed
everything, and such things as he had not seen before or
which took his fancy he seemed to appreciate as much
by the most delicate touch of his fingers as by sight.
This Is quite characteristic of the Arabs ; they like to
feel what Is pleasing to their eye, and their touch Is
extremely delicate. His foot was perhaps the most
perfect model I have ever seen. He was very particular
that we should see the mare he was riding at the time —
not that he thought she was a good specimen of that

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 233
breed of Arabian, for he spoke of her as a man in Eng
land would of his ordinary hack, but to show the differ
ence between a desert-bred horse and those of Damascus.
She was a blood-like, racing-like mare, of good length,
fair substance ; stood about fourteen hands three inches,
with a beautiful head and fine muzzle ; her colour was
chestnut, and she was of the Hadban strain of blood.
The Ruallah, formerly a family of the Jelas tribe of
Anazah, were confederate with the Walud Ali.
The Bani Sahar are similar in character to the
Walud Ali, but are not so wealthy nor so powerful.
Their usual haunts are over against Jelad, the ancient
•Gilead. I have heard that they do not migrate to the
south, but are nearly stationary ; probably they only
move when occasion requires, and do not migrate
annually. They do not, we were informed, rank high
among the Anazah. The Diab is another small tribe,
to the east beyond Jordan ; they are still lower in the
scale of desert standing than Bani Sohar.
The Amur and Amarah are two tribes of consider
able importance, and are possessed of a great many
camels ; they are broken up into small encampments,
and roam all over the northern part of the desert.
The Erfuddi tribe, or perhaps family of some other
Anazah tribe, only commenced to migrate to the north
a few years ago. Their Shayhh, Sedjur, was highly
thought of and described as an honest chief and good
leader ; his son Redja was wonderfully handsome in face
and person. Not liking the north, or from some other
cause, they speedily returned to the Najd.

234 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
The Jelas is a very fine tribe and migrates annually.
They are supplied by Damascus and Hamah with
grain, and when the pasture fails on that side of the
desert, they strike across eastwards to the Euphrates ;
proceeding slowly they visit Mechid Ali, and there lay
in a stock of dates, and from thence direct south for
the winter, returning in the spring by the valley of Al-
Jawf. They are a pastoral tribe ; their horses are much
esteemed. Their Shaykh, Faris ibn Feysul, succeeded
his father in 1872. The late Shaykh, Feysul, was a great
chief, and died at a great age. A family of the name of
Shalah in this tribe became a separate tribe and was
styled Rualla. It is stated the Jelas have sprung from
Mejdis, one of the sons of Anaaz, the son of Wagel.
The Fadan and Confederate Tribes.
It is said that the Fadan tribes were among the first
of the Anazah which migrated from Central Arabia.
They are not very numerous, nor are they rich in herds
and flocks ; they are generally well mounted, although
they do not breed a sufficient number of horses for their
own use, but obtain supplies from other Anazah tribes.
The Fadan, or that portion composed of the family of
Mahaid, are very warlike, and their renowned Shaykh,
Jedaan ibn Mahaid, generally keeps his people employed.
Although his courage is of an adventurous nature, for he
is brave to a fault, yet he is admitted by all to be a
most skilful leader, and he has often been selected for
the chief command of all the tribes of Anazah which

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 235
have been collected for an expedition ; his impetuosity
can rarely be withstood ; the resources of his fertile mind
are inexhaustible, his exploits, his hairbreadth escapes are
almost innumerable, and place him in the same rank of
heroes as Anterah. Moreover, his word, when once given,
is always most scrupulously kept ; " Jedaan's word " has
become a proverb in the desert. He was both Shaykh
and Akeed in his own tribe. In the Fadan tribe is a
family called Rus — the Arabic plural of "Rass," a head
— the descendants of the family of the Shaykh under
whose guidance the tribe first began its migration from
Najd, the members of which have the privilege of
taking the first choice of all mares taken in fight. So
great is the influence of this family, that even Jedaan,
who rules his tribe with a high hand, rarely undertakes
an expedition of importance without their concurrence.
Another family of importance is that of Ibn Sabani,
which is rather noted for Its horses.
The Shmeilat is a branch of the Fadan of consider
able power : their immediate Shaykh was Mohammed
ibn Ameir, a man of note in field and council.
The Hrissa is a kindred tribe- to the Fadan. Deham
ibn Keskish ibn Mahaid, the Shaykh, was a relative of
Jadaan. This is the only tribe of Anazah, we under
stood, which has ever crossed the Euphrates to obtain
a permanent footing in Al-Jazirah, the territory of thelr
foes. The Adjadjara is also a tribe of the same class, more
warlike than pastoral, less numerous than the Fadan and
Hrissa, but not less distinguished. It is singular that

236 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
nearly all the Kadis, or judges in the desert, come from
this tribe. Their late Shaykh, Jamaidjim, who died at
a great age, was a celebrated judge. His award between
tribe and tribe was always final.
Al-Ghabein and Jedaa are smaller tribes of the same
general character : in time of war they follow Jadaan ;
in that of peace, Daham.
As to the migrations of the Fadan Anazah, it would
be difficult to speak with as much confidence as of some
others. The Fadan, being hardly pastoral, are, I think, far
more erratic in their movements under their almost
ubiquitous leader Jadaan, and move in all or any direc
tion he may think occasion requires, and at any season ;
but, for the most part, they retire to the south for winter,
and fall back upon other Anazah tribes for supplies of
horses and camels, if in want.
' When we met Jadaan ibn Mahaid, in 1875, ne aP~
peared to be about forty-five years of age. He was of
a fair height, spare in form, and his face lean ; his eyes
were large, transparent-looking, and very expressive ; his
countenance and features were rather of the Jewish type,
and indicated great intelligence, quickness of perception,
and a restless nervous energy. He was ready of speech
and prompt in action ; his manners were very affable ;
he was courteous and sociable. He dined with us and
ate heartily — seemed to appreciate what our cook had
provided. His dress was very neat and scrupulously
clean.

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 237
Of the Sabaah Tribes.
These were, until lately, seven in number, forming a
confederation, but each tribe has a Shaykh of its own.
The people are both numerous and wealthy, having
flocks of sheep and immense herds of camels, and very
choice horses, and, with the Jelas and Ibn Haddal,
present the best type of the great pastoral Badaween
tribes. The Sabaah tribes were the Komasa, the Abadat,
the Duam, Maseka, the Mowaidja, Sefaleh, and the
Ghassim. The Komasa is a very fine tribe, possessing live stock
almost without number. The Shaykh was Suleyman
ibn Mirshid, a great leader, who had the character of a
straightforward, truthful man. He was a great man in
the desert, perhaps the most powerful of all the Bada
ween Shaykhs. He was the head of the Sabaah tribes,
and controlled their movements ; he was styled " Shaykh
of Shaykhs!' He was a friend of Shaykh Jadaan ibn
Mahaid, but they were quite different in character. Suley
man did not seem to have any of the Impetuosity and
excitable temperament of the Fadan leader; he was more
of a patriarch, was grave and thoughtful, but zealous
and enthusiastic on certain points. He was, I think —
this is from personal observation, and not from any given
information — a Wahabi in religion ; that is to say, he
followed practically the tenets of the cleansed religion
of Islam : he prayed at least night and morning, but
without ostentation ; he was abstemious, would eat nothing

238 Gleanings from the Desert of Ai'abia.
unclean, nor drink anything but water or coffee ; but he
did not abstain from smoking, nor did he shave his head,
or cut his hair. I never met a Badaween who did not
smoke, whereas I have known many Turks who did not.
No Badawee would shave his head or even cut his
hair, except under pressing or very peculiar circum
stances ; from the day of their birth to the day of their
death, their hair grows as nature wills ; the young men
plait their locks on each side of their heads in plaits like
the mane of a racehorse. Nor does the Badawee defile
his head with a Fez. I have known one instance of a
Shaykh who had a shaven head and wore a Fez under
his Khaffiyeh ; but the circumstances were both novel
and peculiar. In the Komasa tribe is a family called
Rajsaleem, distinguished for its horses. Nowak and
Dabah are names of families which have especial strains
¦of blood of certain families of horses.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid, from his great influence
among the Badaween tribes and his standing in the desert,
was often brought into contact, on matters of public
interest, with the officials of the Turkish Government.
His antipathy to the Turks was as well known as it was
deep rooted ; it was a ruling passion with him. We
heard that on one occasion, not many years since, he
joined a wild scheme for setting up an Arab dynasty, of
which the Sherif of Mekka was to have been the head ;
he did not, however, in any way compromise his tribe,
from which he had separated himself for the time.
Frequently did he withdraw himself and the Badaween
under his influence, and break off all connection with the

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 239
Turkish authorities, on account, as he would allege, of
their want of faith and their vexatious policy — this is
the common complaint made by all Badaween tribes
which have had any intercourse with that Government —
to be as often courted and solicited by them to return.
In appearance Suleyman ibn Mirshid differed from
Jadaan ibn Mahaid, as much as in character. Pie was
of full middle height, strongly built, stout rather than
spare, a large-bodied man — "round as a tree," to use
a common but expressive description — with large and
well-formed limbs ; his neck was large and muscular,
and he must have been a very powerful man. His face
was not handsome ; he was darker in complexion than
many Arabs ; his hair was thick and slightly curling ; he
had a fine beard, and longer than is generally seen
among the Badaween, for, contrary to general supposi
tion, the beard is rarely exuberant. He was a grave,
serious, thoughtful, and intelligent man. Although very
wealthy and possessed of the largest tent we had seen,
he was, during our stay with him, very careless in his
dress, often having nothing more on his body than
a large loose shirt of unbleached linen and of coarse
texture, which reached to halfway between knee and
ankle. It must be remembered that he was at home,
and that the weather in July is exceedingly hot. A
beautiful curved sword, with a silver hilt, was suspended
by a leather strap from the shoulder.
The Abadat tribe contained fewer tents than the
Komasa, but was of the same general character.
The Duam was a great tribe when Suleyman ibn

240 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Mirshid was the head of the Sabaah confederation. Ali
Fegheghi was the Shaykh of the Duam ; he was a young
man, but distinguished, and esteemed as one of the best
leaders among the Anazah. This tribe was rich in live
stock, The Meseka is the most numerous, and perhaps
the most wealthy, of the Sabaah tribes. Of the Shaykh,
Mohammed ibn Mooanie, we heard the following
honourable mention : he was wealthy and prudent,
and so strictly honourable that his word had become
a proverb in the desert.
The Mowaidja is also a great tribe, numerous and
wealthy, and was governed in a very peaceable manner
by the late Shaykh, Faris ibn Hedib ; but we heard
that his nephew, who succeeded him, has more warlike
or adventurous propensities.
Sefaleh is but a small tribe, and Ghassim not so large
as the Komasa or Duam. In this tribe Mohammed ibn
Kardush was of almost more importance than the
Shaykh, Mohammed ibn Redjr, from his fame as a
military leader and his horses of the Abayan-Skerrak
family. Both the Fadan Anazah and kindred tribes, and the
Sabaah tribe, sprang from that portion of the Anazah
called Bisher,
The Ibn Haddal is a great tribe, and ranks high
among the Anazah, and we understood it never goes to
the western side of the desert. Ibn Haddal was the
family name of the Shaykh of the main or original
family or residue of the Bisher Anazah, which did not

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 2\i
migrate, and, I suspect, has separated from the parent
family at a considerably later period. I am confirmed in,
this opinion from the fact that I found that the Walud
Ali did not appear to know the Ibn Haddal as a
separate tribe of Anazah, at which I was surprised at
the time ; nor did they understand whom I meant
without some explanation. On reflection, I understand,
they still reckoned the Ibn Haddal as only a family
among the Bisher.
The emigration of the Shammar from Jabal Sham
mar, and the hereditary enmity between them and
the Anazah, had their origin, I expect, from one cause,
namely, the increased power and prevailing influence
of the Anazah. The Shammar would meet with
Anazah in every part of the desert of Central and North-
Central Arabia, and besides holding the principal
pastures, the Anazah held many of the most im
portant wells on routes in the desert where no other
water is to be found. It is quite possible that the
Anazah may have seized upon some of these, and
finally held them ; and for the possession of such a
precious thing as a well of water, especially in certain
situations, it can well be imagined how fierce would
be the struggle, and how bitter the feeling between the
contending tribes.* For instance, at Lyne, on the route
from Jabal Shammar to Merchid Ali towards the
Euphrates, there are numerous wells and abundant
water. It is much frequented by the Anazah Arabs.
* Burckhardt's " Travels in Arabia."

242 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Beyond is a desert of three days' journey without water ;
and in the desert of heavy sand between Jabal Shammar
and Al-Jowf, a distance of five days' journey, there is
only one well, at four days' journey from Jabal Shammar,
and this well, Shagery, belongs to the Ruallah Anazah.
In the autumn of 1874 the Sabaah and Fadan tribes
of Anazah were in collision with the Turkish authorities
at Deir, on the Euphrates (which place, as mentioned
before, formerly a small fishing village, had become a
Turkish garrison). It would, perhaps, be impossible to
give an accurate or unbiassed statement of what took
place ; for in all probability the origin of the quarrel, or
the nice questions involved, are beyond research or
incomprehensible by any but Badaween.
We heard that the demands made, or overtures
offered by the Turkish governor, were such as
Suleyman ibn Mirshid could not entertain ; and that,
owing to the insolent manner in which these had been
put by the officials sent from Deir, Turkish blood
had been shed by some Badaween, and the Sabaah
tribes took their departure. Notwithstanding this, the
governor at Deir made further overtures to Suleyman ibn
Mirshid, and asked him to return. It must be under
stood that the absence of the Badaween would be
hurtful to the interest of the Turkish authorities ; their
occupation would be gone. Suleyman ibn Mirshid
indignantly refused, and said he (the Turkish governor)
had seen the last of him and his tribe.
Similar overtures were made to Jadaan ibn Mahaid,
which, as I understand it, were that these Anazah tribes

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 243
should pay a tax to the Turkish governor or authorities
similar to that paid by such who cultivate the land, and
have the protection of the Turkish Government. These
overtures were refused ; but as I suppose Jadaan did
not wish to leave the neighbourhood, we heard that he
offered to give pledges of camels or sheep that his
people would not plunder or molest the neighbouring
villages, and sent a young relative to invite the governor
of Deir to send out to the desert to receive the pledge.
Jadaan waited to receive the party alone, or with only
a few attendants, for he had sent his tribe away. The
governor sent an armed force, and seized Jadaan, and
had him bound to a cannon. Jadaan was not to be
cowed, but he was only released by the timely and wise
entreaties of a negro officer in the Turkish service.
In the following spring, which was a very back
ward one, after a winter of unusual severity, the Sabaah
Anazah were late in returning to the northern pastures.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid refused to meet the governor
of Deir, so, we were informed, another official was de
puted to treat with the Arab Shaykh, to arrange terms
before the merchants could trade with the Anazah. After
a lengthened delay, these were finally settled, and Suley
man gave out that the Sabaah tribes would remain in
the desert between Syria and the Euphrates for at least
three months ; and to our great surprise we heard that
Jadaan ibn Mahaid had accepted the title of Bey, and
had the rank of colonel in the Turkish army. We heard
him constantly addressed by a Turkish commandant as
"Jadaan Bey," and spoken to with marked respect, but

244 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
perhaps not without some emphasis of lurking suspicion.
Many Badaween Shaykhs were collected in the Sabaah
camp, and some of the Shaykhs themselves told us
that a scheme for retaliation was formed against the
Turks. We heard that, besides the customary arrange
ments requisite before trading, Suleyman ibn Mirshid had
given in pledge property in camels or sheep of his own
to the value of upwards of £1000, but that, in spite of
this, the Turks were still endeavouring to extract more.
Then came a rupture, a fight ; one Shaykh, but not an
Anazah, was run through by the lance of a Badawee of
another tribe, and a general dispersion of tribes ensued ;
and we heard afterwards that the Sabaah had recovered
all they had deposited with the Turks.
We were also informed that the Anazah tribes, or
perhaps certain parts of them, hung about until very
late in the year. Unfortunately for Suleyman ibn
Mirshid, who had announced his intention of not bring
ing up the Sabaah tribes again, he accepted an invi
tation to attend a council at Deir, to discuss the matter
between the Arab tribes and Turkish authorities. He
drank a cup of coffee, and fell back dead. The Sabaah
tribes elected in his place, as Akeed of the whole
confederation, Ali Feghaghi, Shaykh of the Duam, of
whom mention has been made as being a sagacious
leader. Two Turkish officers were sent from Deir to
invite him to a conference ; he refused to go, and the
officers returned. Ali Feghaghi fell ill next day, and
died, after a week of great suffering. The Sabaah went
south immediately after this second tragedy, and five

Of the Badaween of Arabia* 245
only of the confederation returned the following summer.
Both the Komasa and Duam, the tribes of Suleyman
ibn Mirshid and Ali Feghaghi, remained in the south,
and declared they would never bring themselves into
contact with the Turks again.
Jadaan ibn Mahaid, who departed in anger at the
death of Suleyman ibn Mirshid, was elected Akeed or
leader of the five tribes of Sabaah, and he is still Shaykh
of his own tribe, the Fadan, and leader of the Hrissa
and Adjajara. Thus a new confederation was formed by
this union of two others, and Jadaan ibn Mahaid was
in 1876 the Great Shaykh of the desert, holding his own
against the Turks, and may be so still.
I have now gone through the tribes of Badaween
which I have come in contact with, or which have been
more prominently brought under my notice. Those of
the great Anazah race have a particular interest to me
from their unbroken history of genuine Badaween life.
They are and always have been Badaween ; they have
not founded kingdoms, nor entered into the tram
mels of what is generally called civilized life : as their
fathers were, so are they. There may be, of course,
many tribes of Anazah of which I have not heard, but
I think among those I have mentioned will be found the
chief of that great people. I have but little doubt that
the history of all other Badaween tribes, many of which
have been mentioned as in the desert on the borders
of Syria and on the Euphrates, might be obtained with
tolerable correctness, as they all came from Hijaz or

246 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Yaman, passing, for the most part, through Central
Arabia, in the same way as the Tay are traced, step by
step, from Yaman to the banks of the Tigris, or the
Saad family on the right bank of the Euphrates. Other
tribes of Badaween, such as the Fahm, Hadheyl, Bani
Harb, Meteyn, Bani Yam, Bani Lam in Yaman (part of
the last is on the Tigris) the Badaween of Nejdran, the
Kahtan and the Beishe Arabs, and those of Tayf, all
of which are mentioned by Mr. J. L. Burckhardt in his
" Travels in Arabia," are similarly placed, with regard to
the provinces of Hijaz and Yaman, as are those tribes in
the northern desert to Syria and Palestine. Of the
early history of the Shammar I have no particular in
formation ; whether they can trace their origin to any
remains of the former lost Arabians, such as Thamud,
or have been formed by migrations from Hijaz and
Yaman, and collected as one family under the name of
Shammar, I cannot say.
All Badaween, as a rule, are free from many of the
maladies incident to settled populations, whether civilized
or uncivilized ; their habits, their mode of life, their
exclusion from other nations and peoples, the absence
of illicit connections, all tend to keep them sound and
healthy, and marrying among their own people preserves
not only the purity of their race, but by it their charac
teristics are retained. The customs observed among-
all Badaween are even more rigidly kept among the
Anazah; they are more exclusive, more conservative.
Whereas it would be somewhat derogatory for the
daughters of Badaween to marry the sons of Fellahs, or

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 247
settled Arabs, it would be considered so for an Anazah
girl to marry any but an Anazah. Nor do the men
seek for wives beyond the daughters of their own people.
This, I have no doubt, is characteristic, but perhaps in a
less marked degree, among those Arab tribes which have
for centuries been settled in Syria and other countries.
I understand marrying or cohabiting with a slave or
with a girl born of slaves is unknown among the Anazah
and the Badaween generally, but this is not the case
among all Arabs in towns and on the coast. The
Mekkans, Mr. Burckhardt mentions, have constantly
families from their Abyssinian slaves, the children of
which have the same privileges as those born of their
white wives.*
With regard to the Badaween portion of the great
Arab race, I can see no reason why their pastoral life
should be objectionable to the inhabitants of towns and
of the countries which are bordering on the desert ; but,
on the contrary, I conceive that with a firm and just
government in Syria and other provinces, with a wise
and just policy towards the Badaween, their pastoral life
would be highly beneficial to the fixed and trading com
munities of those countries — a policy that would utilize
the resources of the desert, to be had from no other
place in the same perfection, instead of trying to coerce
them to change their mode of life and customs, which
the people have followed from the earliest times, by
becoming settled and agricultural. It is a false policy
* Burckhardt's " Travels in Arabia."

248 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to try to change the Shemite, by nature pastoral, into the
Japhethic Aryan. There is no doubt that in old times
the kingdoms bordering on the desert did derive much
benefit from the desert tribes which supplied them from
their flocks and herds ; and in the days of Solomon,
king of Israel, under his firmly established rule we hear
of no disturbances, but peace, prosperity, and amity may
certainly be inferred as existing in Arabia and among
the desert tribes, with free intercourse. But under a
weak or unsettled government the case was and must
be different ; thus, in the days of the Maccabees
Badaween horsemen overran Palestine and penetrated
to Joppa on the coast.
The Arabs, and especially the Badaween tribes of
the desert, require to be understood (which at present
they are not) before attempting to interfere with them ;
they require to be dealt with firmly, but with great con
sideration and with uprightness, as equals, not as
inferiors. As to trading, the articles they require in
exchange for their wool, camels, and sheep, and perhaps
once again spicery, myrrh, and even gold, should be
genuine, and not tricky and trashy, as are those but too
often supplied for such purposes from Europe to the
bazaars of Syria ; and really good articles should be sup
plied at fair prices, and not at extortionate rates. I
question if there be any people under the sun more
capable of appreciating uprightness, fair and liberal deal
ing and treatment, than the Arabs of the desert. Faults
they may have, both many and great — what people has
not ? — but they have many and great virtues, and are of

Of the Badaween of Arabia. 249
a noble and generous character. Let it be remembered
that for centuries their worst features have been called
forth and noised abroad, their excellences have been
hid among themselves in the desert. Not only this, but
the crimes and faults of other nationalities have been
heaped upon their heads ; for in the ignorance which has
existed in Europe among highly civilized communities,
Arabs have been confusedly mixed up and classed and
associated with Turks and other races and peoples of
the East in general, which are not well known, or may
possess the religion, not of Islam, but what passes for
it generally. Those who are brought into contact with the Bada
ween politically or otherwise should understand their
peculiarities and be able to enter into the sentiment
of their life, character, manners, and customs. Those
who are appointed to protect the regions of civilization,
the borders of those countries extending to the desert,
and thereby to control the Badaween, should not be
their enemies, but really their friends, by being impartial
judges. The Arabs know more of other people and of what is
going on than people give them credit for or generally
suppose, and they are quick to appreciate all that is
true, just, and noble in political relations as in private
matters, and, as a general rule, what they know of
England is to her advantage.

CHAPTER IV.
VISIT TO THE SABAAH-
Winter had given place to spring, which had also'
passed away, with its fresh verdure and many-coloured
flowers, which cover certain parts of the desert at that
season like a beautiful and variegated carpet, and the
fierce sun of midsummer was pouring down his fiery
and unopposed heat upon the desert, when the oppor
tunity of paying a long anticipated visit to the Sabaah
Anazah occurred. The Sabaah are a branch of what
may be called the great eastern division of the Anazah
race, as the Walud Ali are of the western.
We were obliged to give up a projected visit to the
Walud Ali, and leaving cholera-stricken Damascus, we
travelled rapidly to meet an escort from Suleyman ibn
Mirshid, the Shaykh of the Komasa and leader of
Sabaah Anazah tribes.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid sent Ghudda, who was his
brother-in-law, and who became my " brother " — a Bada
ween custom, and confirmed by a certain formula used
among the Arabs in the desert — another Shaykh, a few
Badaween, and his own black slave. This was our real
escort, our passport and safe conduct through the desert

Visit to the Sabaah. 251
to the Anazah. We were rather a large party, with
attendants and baggage animals ; for we had to take
everything with us we might want for ourselves, to carry
presents, some of which were both of bulk and weight,
also those of a lighter kind, veils and kerchiefs for the
ladies, sweets for the children.
At the exit of a wide gorge — rocks on one side,
sand-hills on the other — the Sabaah Shaykhs and
ourselves, who had outstripped the rest of our party,
had to wait their arrival. It was now about 8 a.m.,
and we had been some sixteen hours in the saddle ; the
sun was very hot. " Come," said my brother Ghudda, " I
will lead you to a house (Beit) where you may rest."
He conducted us across the valley and up the eastern
side of the gorge, which was the rocky side, and bade
us to be seated under the shadow of a great rock, and
literally in a thirsty land, for there was no water. I
looked about, and apparently the shade given by this
one rock or stone was the only bit I could see. From
this situation, in one direction we might watch the
approach of our party ; in the opposite direction,
Ghudda endeavoured to point out where the Sabaah
were encamped, by directing us to look across a vast
and wide plain of blue, white, red, yellow, and green, and
of haze, of dazzling light and quivering mirage, to a
faint indication of a line of blue distance, saying, " There
are the Sabaah."
* * -*- * * *
Emerging from, this gorge upon the wide plain, we

252 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
find it to be thickly covered in many places with long
dry grass and small shrubs. Herds of deer, called by
the Arabs gazelles, with lowered heads sweep across our
path in strings at a gallop. Before us is a mound upon
which our course is directed — it Is called a mountain —
where we are told Suleyman ibn Mirshid will be await
ing us, as we had sent on to announce our approach.
It appears to be quite close, but we ride on for a long
time without seeming to get any nearer. At last we
make out that there are a few figures, and one coming
from behind and rapidly approaching is soon seen to
be a horseman at speed. On he comes, lance in hand ;
but as he nears us, he reverses his lance, so that the
butt is advanced towards us, instead of the point. It is
the sign of peace and welcome. This horseman tells
us that Suleyman ibn Mirshid is unavoidably de
tained in camp, but that he has sent two kinsmen
to meet us and to conduct us to his tent. These are a
cousin and a nephew, the former a handsome, sedate,
quiet-looking man of about forty years of age, with
spotless white under-clothing surmounted by a black Aba
or cloak ; and the latter, Meshow by name, a lad of six
teen years, the orphan son of the late Shaykh of the
Komasa tribe. They are both well mounted.
Before we arrive at the encampment, we have to
pass one of those depressions or hollows not unfre
quent in the desert, which collect and hold for a con
siderable time water from the rainfall in the early part
of the year. It Is quite dry now, but has been so
parched up and baked so hard that it can only be

Visit to the Sabaah. 253
traversed by certain narrow tracks. It is of great
extent, but not more than two feet in depth.
The sun Is fast declining, and, long before we either
see or make the camp, we pass long strings and droves
of camels, each accompanied by one or two, or at the
most three men, others coming from all directions, but
making for one point, which was the encampment.
At length we see a long line of black tents, a third
or half a mile in extent. As we approach there is a hum,
the sound of many voices, and the barking of dogs is
also heard. Young women are going with water-pots
to the wells ; men are watering camels ; a few mares
are straying about ; the elder women leave their do
mestic occupations and come to the doors of their tents
to look at us, with hosts of little children, most of them
quite naked, who look scared. We are regarded with
wonder and astonishment.
Ghudda rides up to the nearest tent, and brings back
a bowl of water ; it looks of a dark colour, certainly is
neither clear nor sparkling, but Is pleasant to the taste
and soft. He appears to be delighted in being able to
present us with something as a welcome to the tents of
the Sabaah Anazah. We drink as we ride, and pass on
across a wide interval, to ride through a second line of
tents. These lines are not straight, but slightly of a
crescent form. Another wide Interval and a third line is
seen, and at the extreme end, to the east, facing about
south-east, is the Shaykh's tent. It is a very long one,
quite the largest we have seen ; many people are congre
gated round it.

254 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Young Meshow rides up to the tent ; there is a
slight stir and movement among the people ; a man is
seen to jump on the back of a mare, and rides forward
to meet us ; he appears to be a large man. He is
Suleyman'ibn Mirshid, " Shaykh of Shaykhs " — such was
his title in the desert. Springing from his mare, he bids
us welcome, and brings us into his tent, that portion of
it set apart for guests. Seated on a mat is Jedaan
ibn Mahaid, Shaykh of the Fadan Anazah, with several
others ; he, recognizing our Effendi, starts to his feet,
saying, " Yes, it is he," and hastens to salute him. All
stand up on our entrance, and we are generally and
formally introduced ; all bow. Carpets and cushions are
immediately arranged for us to sit upon and on which
to recline ; coffee is at once prepared.
There is no coffee like that in a Badaween tent.
The tent of Suleyman ibn Mirshid appeared to be about
one hundred and fifty or sixty feet in length, and was
divided into three compartments. There must have
been a hundred people in the guests' apartment. In
a few seconds we found ourselves seated on a carpet
by the side of Jadaan, to meet whom was both a surprise
and pleasure. The Shaykh himself came in occasionally
from his domestic apartment, and sat down for a few
minutes, seeing we were awake, and asked questions as
to how we had fared on our journey ; but from the
silence that was kept, it was evident he desired that
we should have the opportunity for repose.
We drink our coffee, and hot as the season is, the
fire on the floor in the centre of the tent looks cheerful.

Visit to the Sabaah. 255
We converse a little with Jadaan, who is as courteous in
manner and in his expressions as what we call the most
finished gentleman could be. And although such may
cause surprise and may be contrary to general sup
position, why should it ? Are not such persons the
princes of a race of gentlemen ?
When our baggage arrives, we ask where we might
pitch our tent. To which the Shaykh replies, wherever
we please ; but suggests it should be next his own.
Immediately a score or more of Badaween pick up and
throw away the stones that are scattered thickly about
on the ground, and a space being soon cleared by many
hands, they help to pitch the tents. They bring water
and assist our people in many ways.
As we are reclining on our carpets, we see a dark
grey filly feeding outside the tent, and presently two
men lead up a chestnut mare, and picket her at the back
of the tent. We can see her through the opening made
by the wall of the tent being partly] raised to admit of
a free current of air. " Look at her ! What a magnificent
creature ! What length ! what power ! what a head ! " we
exclaim simultaneously. Were a muzzle so fine to be
faithfully depicted, the representation would be con
sidered as exaggerated beyond possibility. See her
now, with her neck slightly arched, her ears pricked,
her nostrils partly extended, showing the bright scarlet
membrane within, as she calls for her barley, which is
being brought to her in a nose-bag, while Jadaan's
secretary stands by and pats her neck as she dips her
nose into the bag.

256 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Supper is now ready — it consists of mutton and rice.
Two sheep have been killed, cut or broken up, and
thoroughly cooked, it seems in an ¦ incredibly short
space of time, apparently while we have been looking
at the mare. It is served in a large round iron dish,
about seven or eight inches deep, and of the size and
like the largest of sponge baths without a spout. It is
carried in by six men, who are preceded by Suleyman
ibn Mirshid himself. The dish is garnished with an
ample supply of large thin wheaten cakes ; both mutton
and rice are thoroughly well cooked, and served up
smoking hot. The mutton is delicious in flavour, and
very tender.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid, Jadaan ibn Mahaid, and some
others sit and eat with us. The large cakes serve as
plates, and every one puts in his finger and thumb and
pulls out the piece of meat he may fancy ; but the
kindly Arabs constantly direct our attention to some
more delicate morsel which we had not selected.
After supper we retire to our own tent, which is now
ready, and the remains of the large repast are discussed
by the numbers of Arabs in and about the Shaykh's
tent. We could not fail to notice some difference between
the Anazah, this great and independent race, from
other tribes of Badaween we had seen and visited, both
in demeanour and occupation.
The kindness and hospitality were alike among all,
but there was more of etiquette in the mode of reception

Visit to the Sabaah. 257
by the Shaykhs of the Anazah. We could not fail to
see that they took and upheld a much higher and quite
independent standing, while to the general members of
these more remote tribes we were objects of some
curiosity. It was evident that they were quite un
accustomed to the sight of, and intercourse with,
strangers ; indeed, Suleyman ibn Mirshid was anxious
that we should not wander too far from his own tent,
unless under his escort : but neither here nor among
other tribes of Badaween did we experience any
rudeness or importunity ; no one begged even for
tobacco, a small supply of which we gave to every man
who brought up a horse or mare for us to see. If at
any time the Shaykh thought that there was more
crowding in the neighbourhood of our tent than was
decorous, the lookers-on were at once sent off ; and
whenever we entered the Shaykh's tent, all there rose
to their feet.
It must be understood that an encampment of a
large tribe of the Anazah is the movable home of
a large and important community, and covers an area
equal to that of many large towns.
After seven or eight o'clock in the morning, the sun
had great power, and during the greater part of the
day clouds of dust and columns of sand were frequently
swept across the plain like large waterspouts. One
day, about noon, while partaking of some slight refresh
ment in our tent — a circular one — one of these columns
of dark-red sand, coming up with amazing rapidity, s

258 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
turning round and round in the whirlwind, seized the
tent with great violence ; the tent-pegs were drawn,
the ropes were flying about, and in a moment the tent
was whirled round, turned inside out like an umbrella
in a storm, and everything was capsized. Our Effendi,
who was favoured by weight, clung manfully to the centre
pole of the tent ; but if all hands had not grappled with
it, the tent would, I have no doubt, have been whirled
away ; as it was, after a struggle and a scramble, the
tent was brought to the ground : the whirlwind had
passed by.
After sundown, we dined outside the tent, and as
it soon became dark, and there was nothing else to
do, we retired early. The nights were refreshingly cool ;
we could bear a thick coverlet over us. Desert life did
not appear to commence very early ; every morning
and evening busy scenes were to be seen at the open
wells, where large numbers of people were congregated
to draw and carry water, and those who led up animals
to water formed an expectant circle outside. Immense
herds of camels were taken out every morning to
pasture, and returned In the evening. Our Effendi,
while we were otherwise engaged, sat at the door of
his tent enjoying the morning air before the heat became
great, and employed himself in counting the herds by
the hundred and the thousand as they passed out, and
estimated the number as at least one hundred thousand.
Our days were spent in watching the habits and
customs of this most interesting people, in taking notes,
and in examining the horses; mares, colts, and fillies

Visit to the Sabaah. 259
which were daily brought for us to see. For some time
the Badaween were very shy in bringing them out to us,
one or two coming up at long intervals, their owners
bringing them in a cautious, half-suspicious kind of way,
and looking as if ashamed of what they were doing; but
after a short time they became more confident, and often
came so quickly and in such numbers — generally in the
morning up to midday, and an hour or two before sun
down — that we had a difficulty in looking over them
and satisfying their owners. We found the close appli
cation we had given for many months to the subject of
Arab blood, of " Al-Khamseh" and its many strains, and
of the Badaween technical terms for a horse's points, of
the greatest use. They were at first surprised at our
questions, and looked at each other with an expression
of inquiry as to how these strangers could know such
things, and occasionally expressed surprise in mono
syllables : this gave way to a feeling of gratification ;
they smiled approvingly at us ; besides which, our evident
fondness for horses created a bond of union between us,
and they went away gratified, and more and more came.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid had given orders, or probably had
expressed his patriarchal wishes, that his people should
show us their mares and horses ; young Meshow, our
Arab brother, and others, were also working on our
behalf among the inmates of the tents. Suleyman ibn
Mirshid was often present himself, and always came
when we wanted him to look at any particular horse or
mare, and to give or confirm the breeding of an animal.
Sometimes a single man would come, leading a mare

260 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
lazily walking behind him at the length of the halter rope,
with her foal, or without, as the case might be. Some
times mares came with colts and fillies a year or a year
and a half old. Generally the men rode up four or five at
a time in line, and it was a pleasant sight to watch their
mares coming towards us, with their long striding walk and
the slightly swinging motion of their hind quarters and
tails, their graceful necks bent as they turned their heads
to look from side to side, their riders sitting easily on
them, swinging in their hand the end of the halter rope,
until, as not unfrequently happened, one mare would
make a snatch at her neighbour's neck or shoulder, causing
the other to spring to one side from the aggressor, when
the men would rate them with a peculiar sound, which
" Yach — k ! " might express to some extent, but indiffe
rently ; and we were constantly reminded of the Arab
description, that mares resemble well-formed and
beautiful women, distinguished by their swinging walk,
and looking from side to side at objects as they
pass. We were much struck too, but not surprised, to find
there was no disposition to hide, or disguise, or palliate
any fault or blemish, which is, I know, so different to
what others have described as their experience ; but, I say
again, it indicates that such have seen a different class of
Arabs. If you pointed out that this horse had a speck
from cold and inflammation in an eye, or the leg of that
mare was slightly twisted, they never offered an excuse :
they knew that, or they could see that without your
telling them ; but there was the horse or mare, just as

Visit to the Sabaah. 261
he or she was. This, or a similar expression, was their
only remark.
As to showing off a horse by holding him by -the
head, or making him stand for show, it seemed to be quite
unknown to them ; usually they would slide off their
mares' backs when they came up to you, and let them
stand behind, utterly regardless whether you could see
them or not while they began to talk to their neighbour
about something else, until brought to their senses by
some commotion caused by playfulness, spite, or perhaps
retaliation, on the part of one or more of the mares.
Most of these mares, objected strongly to be approached
by a stranger, and were inclined to resent with teeth or
heels, and sometimes both, the familiarity of an attempt
to touch. The horses were less impressible and ex
clusive. The desert-born horse or mare, bold as a lion
among his own people and in the desert, is scared and
wildly excited when brought into contact with unfamiliar
sights and sounds.
Towards the close of a long and trying day, we
made repeated offers for a bay mare, five years old and
unblemished ; she was a beautiful creature, just under
fifteen hands in height, very blood-like, but wildly
excitable, glared at us like a tigress, and resented our
approach even. Crowds gathered round as we frequently
repeated our offer. The Shaykh indicated she was not
to be taken away, and we thought we were on the eve
of obtaining her, but suddenly, among the sound of
many voices and loud talking, the mare was taken off by
her owner.

262 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
This was just at sundown. I turned over in my
mind what was best to be done, for I seemed to be
losing time, which, under pressing circumstances, was of
great consequence to me, and when dinner was an
nounced, I ordered my tent to be struck, and prepa
rations to be made for our departure that night.
The Arabs who were about the Shaykh's tent were
much astonished at this movement. While we were
quietly eating our dinner, Suleyman ibn Mirshid, accom
panied by Jadaan ibn Mahaid, came in to us in haste,
and after saluting us, and having been requested to sit
and partake of our repast, asked, What meant the pre
parations they saw around them, and why were our tents
struck ? what had they done ? what had happened ? I
explained to Suleyman ibn Mirshid that I had come from
a very great distance to visit him and his people ; that
he had expressed his willingness to receive us ; that he
said we could obtain some mares and horses from his
people ; but as I found, when I offered to buy, I could
not obtain ; I could not afford to delay longer, and
although I regretted the object of my visit had failed as
far as business was concerned, I was still glad to have
seen him and his people. Both Suleyman ibn Mirshid
and Jadaan ibn Mahaid begged and implored me to
remain ; they called upon our Effendi to intercede. I
replied that I did not complain of the people not parting
with their horses or mares if they did not want to part
with them, but being told I could buy, and then to find
no one would sell, was rather like being mocked. I had
no desire to beat down his people ; I was prepared to

Visit to the Sabaah. 263
give and had offered a fair price ; if he thought it was
not sufficient, he could let me know.
Suleyman ibn Mirshid and Jadaan ibn Mahaid, taking
my hands in theirs, implored me to stay in a manner so
demonstrative, in spite of my endeavours to restrain them,
that I felt quite ashamed ; and they promised faithfully
that the next morning the bay mare should be mine.
The next morning, things in and around the Shaykh's
tent appeared to us more quiet than usual. The usual
scenes at the well near our tent had been performed.
Notwithstanding we were anxiously expecting the mare,
we kept a calm exterior ; but although we looked about us
as we strolled in the neighbourhood, we could not see the
mare, nor indeed any other. At last there was a slight
stir in the tent of Suleyman ibn Mirshid ; he came up to
us, leading the mare, accompanied by Jadaan ibn
Mahaid, and followed by the owner of the mare, who
appeared rather dejected and reluctant to part with his
mare. It was Suleyman ibn Mirshid who put the
halter rope in my hands ; her price was told out on the
table, exactly that which I had offered, and handed over
to her former owner, and the mare was picketed at our
tent. A very simple certificate of the mare's breeding
and family was written out at my request, in the
presence of the two Shaykhs, to which they placed their
seals, one as a guarantee, the other as a witness.
After this .we were enabled to get on better, and
eventually obtained both horses and mares. There
were several for which I made offers. Generally, after
an offer was made and we had some talk with the

264 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Shaykh on the subject, the animal was tied to his tent,
the owner or owners and many others resorted to the
Shaykh's tent, and after a long consultation, sometimes
in tones loudly raised, the Shaykh appeared with the
owner and his horse, or the animal was led away. The
Badaween who looked on seemed to regard the pro
ceedings with much interest. Talkat, the owner of
a fine bay horse I selected, walked behind his horse,
which was led by the Shaykh to our tent, looking as If
he were going to be hanged, and just as Suleyman
ibn Mirshid was handing me the halter, Talkat rushed
forward to seize it ; but the Shaykh turned upon him,
rebuked him, and even threatened him with the end of
the halter rope. These consultations sometimes lasted
several hours. Another man brought up his mare with
a colt at her foot, with a kind of savage determination
on his face, as if he had made up his mind to a very
disagreeable thing ; after a long and apparently rather
stormy debate in the Shaykh's tent, in the presence of
a large assembly, she became mine, but he led away
the little foal in sullen silence. I could not get the little
colt ; but the mare was in foal, and dropped in the
following spring a bay filly, own sister to the colt.
Sometimes, when we thought we had almost con
cluded a bargain, at the last moment the owner could
not make up his mind to part with his. horse or mare,
and disappeared suddenly; at other times, Arabs had
to consult with their joint owners, and did not return.
There were several animals we might have secured, but
until I had obtained what I had specially gone for, I

Visit to the Sabaah. 265
would not buy others. To be successful you must have
the money with you, and be ready to pay it down,
either in Turkish gold or silver, at the right moment, or
the opportunity will very likely be lost. English and
French gold the Anazah would not look at, I think for
this reason : in buying grain and other commodities from
the merchants in the towns to which they send, or to
intermediate dealers who may visit them, the value of
Turkish gold is known, but the Arabs probably think
they might not be able to do so well with the other
gold, of the value of which there might be some dif
ference of opinion, and they might lose in the exchange.
It appeared to us that whenever the Shaykh had made
the bargain for us, there was no going back.
On one occasion we had a large gathering of Bada
ween Shaykhs in our tent, Anazah as well as some from
other tribes, to discuss some points of importance to
themselves. It was an interesting spectacle.
In Part III. will be given sketches of certain horses
and mares which we saw among the Anazah.

'&

Had not Suleyman ibn Mirshid, Mamoud Bey,
Shaykh of the Mowali, who was also there, and others,
told us that there was a project on foot among the
Anazah to thwart some measures on the part of the
Turkish authorities, several Incidents which occurred
during our stay with the Sabaah would have Indicated that
some movement was intended, and as we had finished
our business, so far at least as circumstances had per
mitted, we announced our intention to depart. Suleyman

266 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ibn Mirshid and others, who but a short time before had
been so anxious to prolong our stay, did not now
offer any opposition, nor press us to delay our departure.
Jadaan ibn Mahaid, Mamoud Bey, the Mowali Shaykh,
and several others had departed previously ; others had
arrived. Several councils had been held in the Shaykh's
tent, at which the leading men had attended, and on
these occasions they wore their swords with silver hilts.
Messengers rode up, and, after a few words with the
Shaykh, disappeared. Mounted men were despatched,
and I have reason to believe that a body of some fifty
horsemen were sent off on a flying expedition. Suley
man ibn Mirshid's countenance was graver than usual,
and it was evident to us that when he conducted us out
of camp and had set us fairly on our way one night, our
departure was a relief to him. Events had become ripe.
That night the camp was broken up ; a fight ensued,
and the tribes dispersed.

PART III

CHAPTER I.
THE ARABIAN HORSE.
J^JU J-fcss^ c^*^ u**^
Abulfeda.
The term " Arabian horse " expresses a breed or race in
a restricted sense — the horse of the Arabs. Horses of
other countries cannot be defined in the same manner.
To speak of " the English " or " the French horse," or that
of any other European country, does not indicate a similar
relation of such horses to their countries respectively ;
it does not point out any special breed, or even class.
Thus the term " English horse " includes varieties from
the diminutive pony to the cart-horse of gigantic propor
tions, as well as the blood or thoroughbred horse, which
last forms but a small section of the horses in England,
and although he has influenced all other kinds in Eng
land and most classes of horses abroad, yet as a class he
is not in general use. But among the tribes of the deserts
of Arabia, the Arabian is the only horse. He is one by

270 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
himself. As he is so entirely identified with the people
of Arabia, a knowledge of the Arabs and their history will
ensure a more just appreciation of the subject of the
Arabian horse, and make many things plain which
otherwise are difficult to be understood, to insure which
a short but tolerably comprehensive sketch of Arabia
and the Arabs has been given first.
What general knowledge there may be of the Arabian
horse has been, for the greater part, acquired from
horses in India, Syria, and Egypt, or from horses occa
sionally sent to this country as presents from Constanti
nople or elsewhere — indeed, from horses, or accounts of
them, from very many countries, districts, and peoples,
rather than from actual acquaintance with the horses of
Arabia, and more especially with those of the tribes of
the interior desert, who have the best horses.
Information supplied by travellers has generally
been very meagre, and when the horse has been more
decidedly noticed by some of these, I have found, instead
of any authentic records or connected history, many
unconnected statements, often conflicting on main points,
and not easily to be reconciled in details, but withal an
undercurrent of truth. These fragments of information
seem to have been obtained from people of settled dis
tricts in bordering countries, and not from the Badaween
of the desert, and to refer to and to be descriptive of
horses of such districts rather than of those of the
desert tribes of Arabia.
These fragmentary accounts have resulted in a vague
idea, but which is generally accepted, that there are three

The Arabian Horse. 271
breeds of Arabs, namely, Attechi, Kadeshi, and Kock-
lani — the first of hardly any value, and sometimes
wild ; the Kadeshi, a class of horses improved by the
pure blood of the class named Kocklani. That there
are three such distinct breeds or classes of Arabian horses
is an erroneous opinion, but there is some ground for the
supposition, which is this : in Syria and some other dis
tricts, and in towns near the coast, are to be found three
kinds of horses — the Arabian, not as a native, but as a
horse of luxury ; the Kidish, which class has no pretension
to being an improved breed, and is not of Arab blood at all.
Kidish means first a gelding, and the term is applied to
any common sort of horse used for travelling or baggage,
from the fact that many of this kind are geldings, and
some of this sort are runners or pacers, and are used by
merchants and other classes of townsmen as hacks. And
there is another class, well described as " sons of horses"
in Syria. They are not genuine horses, i.e. Arabian
horses" ; they may be, and often are, the produce of
Arabian horses from common mares, be they Kurdish or
Turkoman ; they are the sons of horses, but not the
sons of mares, i.e. of Arabian mares. Many of these
" sons of horses " show much blood, and I have seen
less blood-like horses passing as Arabs in India. Con
siderable numbers of this class are bought up in Syria
by agents from Egypt and elsewhere, who give rather a
better price than the Turkish Government allows for
remounts for the cavalry service, and on horses of this
class the cavalry of the army corps of Syria, which is
the best horsed, is generally mounted.

272 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Horses are not numerous in Arabia, certainly not in
proportion to the size and extent of the country, and
the supply, I consider, is not greater than to meet the
demand of the country. There are many parts of
Arabia in which the horse is rarely, and perhaps some
in which he is never seen. Although of Arabia alone,
the Arabian horse may be said to belong rather to
certain families or tribes in the desert of Arabia, than
to the country or people at large.
In certain towns in Syria, commencing at Aleppo,
at Hamah and Damascus, also in the Hijaz and Yaman,
Arabian horses may be found In the possession of
families or persons of good social standing, or of officials
of high rank ; but these, for the most part, are acquired
from the neighbouring deserts. In the Hijaz, i.e. the
narrow strip of country washed by the Red Sea on the
east, similar to Syria further north, there are but few
horses. In Mekka itself there are very few horses.
Mr. Burckhardt, who visited that city early in the present
century, said there were not more than sixty kept by pri
vate individuals. The Sherif, an Arab, the hereditary de
scendant of a noble family, had about twenty or thirty in
his stable ; also the Badaween who were concerned in
public affairs at Mekka had mares ; but none of the
merchants or other classes kept any. They contented
themselves with mules or Kidishes or Gadishes (geldings
or horses of a common kind), not Arabians.
The few Arabians kept at Mekka were purchased
from Badaween. At Madinah there were no horses
except those of the Shaykh al-Haram and his followers.

The Arabian Horse. 273
The Badaween in Hijaz, especially near Mekka, are
very poor in horses, a few Shaykhs only having any ; but
those near Madinah have more.
A very similar state of things exists in Syria : at
Aleppo, Hamah, and Damascus, all of which have been
held by Arab princes, Arabian horses are to be found,
but in no great numbers, considering the size and im
portance of those cities ; the supply is principally de
pendent upon what intercourse or connection there may
be with the neighbouring tribes of Badaween. It is true
that some townsmen do breed, but the less said about
the produce the better, for I am in possession of data
sufficiently convincing that purity of blood is not always
to be depended upon in such cases.
It is only consistent and reasonable to believe that
horses among the Arabs of the interior deserts have a
better claim to be genuine than such as have come to
hand through foreign sources, from India, Syria, and the
Turks, without any specific knowledge of their history
or authentic record of their blood.
That horses are to be found in a wild state In the
deserts of Arabia is a fallacy. I never heard of such a
thing hinted at in the desert.
In the whole of Arabia, the Anazah, a great race of
Badaween, dating back to remote antiquity, composed
of many tribes, the most wealthy, the most powerful,
the most important in the country, have the best horses.
This is by the general consent of all Arabs, and of all
conversant with the subject. Another general impres-
T

274 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
sion, urged by several writers, that there are many breeds
of Arabian, has, I suspect, arisen from mistaking the
various distinguishing names of strains of the same
blood for separate or distinct breeds. Such are often
only the names of owners, and some have been given or
added from some feature or incident which caused an
animal to be peculiar, or which had rendered him or her
self famous, and which names are applied to the off
spring generation after generation.
To assign particular breeds of Arabian horses to
different parts of the country is, I am sure, quite wrong ;
it is a misconception.
A "Najd breed" is constantly alluded to by writers and
travellers, and generally spoken of as a distinct breed
and the first in Arabia. Najd is the name of a province,
and does not possess any special breed of horses. The
idea, we found, did not exist among the Badaween, nor
was the term "Najd breed" understood by them. It is,
however, not uncommon to hear people in Syria speak
of Najd horses, and generally such are not esteemed,
from the fact that they call horses which come from
Erack or Turkish Arabia, Najd horses, in which districts
there are horses of mixed blood and other horses than
Arabian. Erack or the neighbouring districts, although
frequently called Najd, are wholly distinct from the pro
vince of Najd in Central Arabia. The many ways
which have been adopted of spelling the same name
may have caused misconceptions ; thus, Nedschdis, Ned-
gedjee, Negeddy, Nedjee, and Nedjdee, are all intended

The Arabian Horse. 275
to express Najd, or a horse or horses of the country of
Najd. The Arabian should be sought for in Arabia, and not
in neighbouring countries or districts, where other horses
are to be found, and the Arabian is only a stranger, and
especially in those tribes of Badaween of the interior
which have the best horses and none other but Arabian.
I consider there was but one breed or race of horses
in Arabia, i.e. the Arabian horse, so called from the
country, or, with more truth, from being the horse of the
Arabs, is of one origin, and was not derived from several
later varieties of the horse family.
The Arabian horse Is of the Kuhl race. Keheilan
is the generic name of the Kuhl or Arabian breed of
horses. Thus a true Arabian horse is a Keheilan, and a
mare a Keheilet — fern.
The blood of the Kuhl race has been preserved in
Arabia and handed down by the Badaween in a pure
state by "Al-Khamseh" ("The Five"), a family formed
by a selection from the general or universal race of Kuhl
in Arabia, at a very remote period of antiquity, and pre
served by the Badaween as the authentic record and
register of the Arabian breed of horses. All horses in
" Al-Khamseh " are Keheilans, and all mares Keheilets.
Kheilan, the generic name of the true Arabian horse,
. —
is derived from the Arabic word '^^ , i.e. Khl, or Kuhl,
or Kuhal, signifying " antimony," and was given to the
Arabian horse doubtless from the great resemblance
which his skin (not only on the face, but all over the

276 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
body) has to antimony, and not alone from the similar
appearance of the eye of the Arabian horse to that of
the human female eye when painted with antimony.
The skin of the Arabian horse is a bluish black, and
often presents a very strong resemblance to skin painted
with antimony.
This is a marked feature and the true colour of the
Arabian horse ; variation of colour in the coats of in
dividual horses is quite secondary. I have seen it
stated that the antimony-colour skin is darkest in horses
of a grey colour. The contrast of colour may seem to
be greater ; but I have seen in the desert bay horses,
both golden and dark, with skins as 'dark and as
thoroughly of the appearance of having been "anti-
monied " as any grey horses. This appearance is very
marked in some individuals.
The Arabs use the feminine term Faras (mare)
generally in speaking of horses, as we do the male term
" horse." Faras (mare), "The swallower of the ground," is
derived from the Arabic word Ifterasa, "he swallowed"
or " devoured!'
The Arabic for a horse is Hisan, "a strong, noble
horse," derived from the Arabic word Tahassan, mean
ing that the horse is a defence from attack ; Tahassan
meaning "defending one's self," or "seeking for security,"
as one would by retiring into a strong tower.
The terms are significant, and express the attributes
of the horse in similar language to that used in the

The Arabian Horse. 27 7
Book of Job, " He swalloweth the ground with fierceness
and rage."
"Al-Khamseh." Abulfeda.
" Al-Khamseh," or " The Five" comprehends much
and is difficult of explanation. I expect that none but
certain among the Badaween, perhaps none but certain
of the Anazah, do thoroughly comprehend it in all its
bearings. Yet, without some knowledge of " Al-Khamseh," we
know absolutely nothing of the Arabian horse.
I consider the words of Abulfeda, prince of Hamah,
the historian and geographer, which are placed at the
head of this chapter and repeated at the head of this
section, are peculiarly adapted to the subject : " All
knowledge of that which is not wholly known is not to
be abandoned ; knowledge of part is better than ignorance
of the whole."
We found the general opinion of townsmen, and of
such Europeans as had heard of "Al-Khamseh," to
be that it was a collection of five distinct breeds of
Arabian horses.*
We generally heard these supposed breeds described
by the names of Keheilan, Seklawi, Abayan, Hadban,
* I consider this idea of ' ' Al-Khamseh " to be altogether a miscon
ception.

278 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
and Homdani. Some put in Jelfon, or Jalfon, and
Manakhi, and then we always noticed they were sur
prised to find they had more than the orthodox number
of five names. To make the number right, they would
sometimes leave out Hadban (which is most certainly
of " Al-Khamseh ") and put in Manakhi ; still, with all
their changes, they never got them right. We noticed
that the changes were always rung on the Hadban,
Homdani, Manakhi, and Jelfon ; they never took
liberties with Keheilan, Seklawi, and Abayan. By
some authors, "Al-Khamseh," as the collective name,
does not appear to have been generally known. They
describe "five great recognized races,'' under the names
of Tanese, Monakeye, Kaheil, Saglawl, and Julfle, spelt
in various ways by different authors.
In this second list of names appears that of Tanese,
and those of Hadban and Homdami are omitted ; but
the number of five names is retained. The difficulty
as to the names is in part thus explained : in the first
list Keheilan, the generic name of the whole race, has
been placed as a family or one of the five breeds ;
and strains or secondary families, descended from the
original families, have been added.
Distinctive names, either original or of later period
and of secondary strains, are preserved by the imme
morial custom of the offspring always assuming the
family or distinctive name of the dam, not by each
family or strain in " Al-Khamseh " being kept to itself.
Mares of one strain are constantly mated with horses
of another in "Al-Khamseh," without regard to the

The Arabian Horse. 279
rigid observance that both are necessarily of the same
strain, alt being of the same original blood : care only is
usually taken, as far as circumstances permit, to select the
most approved horses. To secure this, mares are some
times sent long distances to a horse of another tribe.
Care is also taken to use the most esteemed strains or
families in "Al-Khamseh;" such is, however, more es
pecially the case in certain tribes of the Anazah race.
The Anazah have greater facilities and a larger selection
than other tribes of Badaween. The selection of certain
strains can be clearly seen from the fact that some
families 'have almost innumerable strains or secondary
families, whereas others have only one or two. " Al-
Khamseh," therefore, is one select breed or family,
and not five distinct breeds.
Another idea is that "Al-Khamseh," or the cele
brated five mares, were those of Mohammed, selected
and blessed by him. Such may have been the fond
fancy, a kind of pious fraud, devised by a certain school
of Mussulmans and but too readily accepted as a fact by
Europeans; but such is quite at variance with the ancient
Arab account of the origin or formation of "Al-
Khamseh." After the death of Mohammed, it was quite common
to attribute most events of importance or of interest to
him. He certainly suppressed, as far as he was able,
all knowledge in the past, pronouncing the times before
him "those of ignorance." His influence, however,
was more manifest among the settled inhabitants of

2 So Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
towns, and took still deeper root in other countries
and among alien peoples, upon whom his doctrines were
forced, or which adopted Alkoran, and by whom errors
have been multiplied and fanaticism aroused : it had
little or no effect upon the Badaween of the desert of
Arabia. Any temporary excitement among them caused
by his successes soon subsided.
It is quite possible that Mohammed may have pro
nounced a blessing on " Al-Khamseh," or the five mares,
but the blessing must have been retrospective. In the
desert we never heard of Mohammed's mares, nor was
his name ever mentioned in any way as connected with
the Arabian horse.
There is no ground for the supposition that horses
were more numerous at Mekka in the time of Mo
hammed than at the beginning of this century or now ;
but there is great reason to believe that neither he nor
his father's house had any horses. Towards the close
of his career it is quite likely Mohammed did show some
interest in horses, as a means of ingratiating himself
with the neighbouring tribes of Badaween. It does
not appear that he had any horses himself before he
went to Madina, after which epoch he is stated to have
had seven mares ; and it has been stated that from these
seven and others which he had, he selected and blessed
five. i. Sekh ("the pouring out"), bought of a Badaween
of the tribe Fezaha.
2. Al-Martadjez, bought of a Badaween, name un
known.

The Arabian Horse. 281
3. Al-Sizez, given to the Prophet.
4. El-Zarh (" the portion "), given to the Prophet.
5. Al-Haif ("the coverlet "), given by Rabiah ibn
Aby al-Bara Salif.
6. Subbah (" the rosary "), bought by the Prophet
from a Badaween of Jahmia.
7. Al-Wert (" the rose "), given to the Prophet.
The only point of interest in this account of Mo
hammed's mares is that It shows how they were obtained ;
three wrere bought from Badaween and four were
given. This was after he went to Madina.
I have heard of still another opinion, which is that
the families in " Al-Khamseh " bearing the names of
Seklawi, Abayan-Sherakh, Manakhi, Hadban, Jelfon,
and Homdani are all descended from one particular
mare, called Keheilet Ajuz, or "the Arabian mare of the
old woman," she having been herself a descendant of one
of the five original mares of which " Al-Khamseh " was
formed in the first instance.
If this be correct, the blood of the collective family
of "Al-Khamseh" has been brought down through
strains derived from one especial mare, instead of
through five collateral lines.
Thus, at a certain period in the history of the Arabs,
in very remote times, an authentic breed was established
by a selection from the general or universal race of
Kuhl in Arabia ; and at some later period, but still very
remote, a further selection from " Al-Khamseh " was
made ; and the authentic record of " Al-Khamseh "

282 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
has been handed down since then through the descen
dants of the original five, or " Al-Khamseh," in which
case the blood of the remaining portion of " Al-
Khamseh " has probably been scattered, dispersed, and
become unknown, as was that of the universal or general
race of Kuhl upon or after the original formation of
" Al-Khamseh."

The History of Keheilet Ajuz.
Her birth was remarkable.
During a short interval of rest, when on a long and
rapid journey, her master being pursued, a mare gave
birth to a filly foal. He abandoned the foal and pur
sued his course on his mare, the dam ; when he again
halted, he was surprised to find the foal shortly make
her appearance. She had stoutly followed the trail of her
mother. The foal was placed in charge of an old
woman, who tended her ; hence her name, Keheilet Ajuz,
or " the Arabian mare of the old woman."
The post-Mohammed idea that "Al-Khamseh"
(" The Five ") were those of Mohammed or of his era
may be dismissed as unworthy of consideration, as quite
contrary to the ancient Arab accounts and to a par
ticular fact recorded in history, and we have rather to
consider whether "Al-Khamseh " has descended through
five collateral lines of descent, or whether the blood of
" Al-Khamseh " is now only represented through one
source, namely, that from the Keheilet Ajuz.

The Arabian Horse. 283
All the Families and Strains of Blood in
" Al-Khamseh " are Keheilan.
The important fact that all. families and strains in
" Al-Khamseh " are Keheilan we were enabled to ascer
tain clearly and distinctly from the Anazah and other
Badaween Shaykhs. We had been gradually led up to
this conclusion, that the families in " Al-Khamseh "
were all Keheilan, from several little incidents which we
had observed during a close investigation of the subject ;
and we took advantage of the presence of one Ahmed
abu Salus, a Badaween Shaykh well informed on most
subjects connected with the desert and the history of the
tribes and horses, when several townsmen were assem
bled, to put the following question : — Whether there had
not been a time when the Abayan-Sherakh, one of the
supposed five distinct breeds in "Al-Khamseh," had
been Keheilan ? The Shaykh expressed great surprise
that there should be a doubt on the subject, and replied,
" The Abayan is most surely Keheilan." The spokesman
of those present, in derision, said, " I suppose you will
next tell us that the Seklawi-Jedran and other families
in ' Al-Khamseh ' are also Keheilan." Abu Salus smiled,
and said in reply, " Certainly, they are all Keheilan!'
This gave us a key to " Al-Khamseh." We made a
point of putting the same question to Anazah and other
Badaween Shaykhs, and invariably received the same
explanation, that they are all Keheilan.
Although the name Keheilan cannot have the place
generally assigned to it as a distinct breed or family in

284 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
"Al-Khamseh," being, as has been explained, the
generic name of the whole, yet the family called Keheilet
Ajuz (if not the mother of them all) holds perhaps the
most important place in "Al-Khamseh." Keheilet Ajuz
means " the Keheilet or Arabian mare of the old woman,''
and this mare sprang from one of the descendants of
" the five Keheilets " which originally constituted " Al-
Khamseh ; " therefore the five names would appear as
Keheilet Ajuz, Seklawi, Abayan, Hadban, and Homdani ;
but, according to this arrangement, Manakhi and Jelfon,
or some two others, accounted for as in " Al-Khamseh,"
must be omitted, if only five names be admissible, as also
Tanase, which Is enumerated by some authors as one of
the five principal breeds. But as the Seklawi is actually
a strain derived from Keheilet Ajuz, on the authority
of Suleyman ibn Mirshid, Shaykh of the Komassa
tribe of Sabaah Anazah, and as I believe the Abayan
to be likewise, and taking these two as Incorporate
in Keheilet Ajuz, this admits at once of the Manakhi
and Jelfon taking their places among the five of " Al-
Khamseh ; " and unless there be some error in placing
Tanase, a name mentioned by some writers, but which
we did not hear named in the desert as one of the
original families, it still has to be accounted for. It
may have been, however, that family from which sprang
Keheilet Ajuz, and that, from the great fame of Keheilet
Ajuz and the excellence of her descendants, her name
may have been substituted for the original family name.
This is but a surmise.
It may be asked why there should be any doubt

The Arabian Horse. 285
about the history of "Al-Khamseh," or, at all events,
why there should be any doubt whether Keheilet Ajuz
and her descendants represent one of the lines of
descent and are collateral with four others in "Al-
Khamseh," or whether all the present families acknow
ledged as of "Al-Khamseh " be derived from her.
As I warned my readers, there is more in " Al-
Khamseh" than is commonly known, more than we
were able fully to ascertain or to comprehend ; but we
learnt sufficient to find out how little it was understood,
and how many and great were the misconceptions with
regard to "Al-Khamseh." From the Badaween only,
and especially the Anazah, can a true and thorough
knowledge be obtained, I believe, and In the desert
you have not always the opportunity of hearing a
continuous history given by one particular person.
Information is gained, little by little, from words
casually spoken, giving an opportunity for questioning
and inquiry, from incidents which occur, from answers
to questions which arise from time to time. It must
be also understood that many words used by the
Anazah relating to horses are incomprehensible to
some other Arabs and townsmen, and many expressions
in use among townsmen are not understood by the
Anazah, and from the townsmen you cannot get much
help ; and although, at times, certain things and
occasional words spoken in conversation seemed to
indicate that all the present families in " Al-Khamseh "
were of and from Keheilet Ajuz, on the other hand,
there was evidence tending to support the 'opposite

286 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
opinion, that the line of the Keheilet Ajuz, with her
secondary families and many strains, is collateral with
the other four in " Al-Khamseh," and that all the
families therein are not descended from Keheilet Ajuz.
But on some points actual knowledge and facts have
been clearly ascertained. Thus, for instance, that
Keheilan is the generic name of the Arabian race, and
not the special name of a family ; that all in " Al-
Khamseh " are Keheilan ; that Seklawi-Jedran is not
a separate or original family, but a secondary one, i.e,
is derived from Keheilet Ajuz. But "all knowledge
of that which is not wholly known is not to be
abandoned ; knowledge of part is better than ignorance
of the whole." *
We never met any one yet, either native or European,
outside of the desert — I may almost say any besides some
of the Anazah — who were anything nearly particular
enough, or sufficiently discriminating, with regard to the
blood of the Arabian horse. Even our friend, who had
spent so many years on the verge of the desert, and had
had such frequent intercourse with the Badaween in the
desert, and had paid more attention to the subject
than any one we ever met, did not appear to us to be
sufficiently particular, and — with all due respect I say
it — did not seem to have grasped the subject (indeed,
I believe it is not fully understood), and we held on
many points different and opposite opinions ; and I con
sider his were not always in accordance with information
to be obtained from the Anazah. To them, indeed, and
* Abulfeda.

The Arabian Horse. 287
to their accounts of the Arabian horse I look with the
greatest confidence, and have been most careful in
weighing and investigating all I actually heard from
them and saw among them, testing and interpreting
anything which appeared doubtful or contrary by the
light of history as far as possible.
The history of "Al-Khamseh'' I consider to be
intimately connected with the Anazah race.
I understand that the Anazah, or certain tribes of
that race, possess no other blood, and acknowledge no
other blood than that which is strictly of " Al-Khamseh."
Nay, I am not sure that the Anazah, or certain tribes of
that race, do not hold and regard " Al-Khamseh " in
a closer and more restricted sense than Is usual among
other Badaween and the Arabs generally ; that among
them "Al-Khamseh" is more select.
"Al-Khamseh" had its origin from certain horses
of an ancestor of the first Anazah, the father of the
Banu Anazah (the children, or descendants, or tribes of
the Anazah race).
History records the fact that Rabiah, the grand
father of the Anazah race, was surnamed "al-Faras,"
i.e. " of the horses " (see former chapter on the history
of the Arabs), because he obtained the horses from his
ancestors by right of inheritance, or that they were
allotted to him by hereditary law or entailed upon him.
Let us refer to the history of Rabiah al-Faras. He
was one of the four sons — usually placed third on the
list — of Nazar, and great-grandson of Adnan, and was

288 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
perhaps named Rabiah as being fourth in descent from
Adnan (the lineal descendant from Ismail arid the
house of Jorham). Rabiah al-Faras had two sons, Asad
(" lion ") and Dabiyah. From Asad was Jadailah ; from
him Wayel (from whom Banu Wayel), Bekr, and
Taglab, whose descendants were for so long a period
engaged in complicated family feuds. But of the sons
of Asad notably was Anazah, from whom come the Banu
Anazah, who were inhabitants of Khaibar, which Is still
inhabited by a part of the Anazah race.* We know
very little about them from that time to the present,
except that they appear, through all ages, to have
been Badaween in the highest acceptance of the term,
unknown to the outward world. But we find that
from their great increase, and the prosperity of a great
Shaykh, Wayel,\ they spread over a greater part of
Central Arabia ; that they had the exclusive rights
of the whole of the pastures of Najd, they had rights
of soil, and possessed the palm-trees in certain districts,
and held many of the most important wells. And when
the learned Dr. Edward Pocock, the great Orientalist,
a profound Arabic scholar, for some time chaplain to the
Consulate at Aleppo, brought their origin to light about
the middle of the seventeenth century, he probably
had no idea that they, the Banu Anazah, were then in
existence as a distinct and most powerful race in
Arabia. The grandfather of the founder of the Anazah
* The date-trees there belong to the Walud Ali branch of Anazah.
t This is Wayel, to whom all the Anazah refer when speaking of
their history.

The Arabian Horse. 289
race was he who received the horses from his fore
fathers by right of inheritance. Of the sons of Asad,
the son of Rabiah al-Faras, Anazah was chief; and
when the Banu Anazah, or the Anazah race, or tribes of
Anazah, are brought to our notice after an interval of
2500 years, what do we find ? They are found to be
a very powerful and very exclusive people, and are
notable for having the best horses in Arabia. They
neither use nor recognize (so I understand) any other
blood but that of "Al-Khamseh," nor do they use
any horses which have not been bred in their own
tribes. That the horses entailed upon Rabiah al-Faras were
of " Al-Khamseh " does not admit of a doubt. They
were not the five original Keheilets which founded
" Al-Khamseh," but the select breed, or a portion of it,
descended from those Five Mares, and which has come
down through Asad to his son Anazah, and has been
preserved by the Anazah race.
Origin of "Al-Khamseh."
For the origin of " Al-Khamseh " we must go still
further back. The five Arabian mares, or " the five "
Keheilets which form Al-Khamseh, were those of Sala
man (this is the account of the genuine Arabs), not
Mohammed's mares. To suppose that the great king
of Israel is intended is unwarrantable — it is simply a
misconception — yet writers, who have heard of this
account and mentioned it, have evidently concluded U

290 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
such a reference was intended. In this mistake they
have been followed by their readers, who have treated
the account as a fable, and have attributed it to Oriental
grandiloquence and true Eastern exaggeration ; whereas
the Arabs, unpretending and thoroughly truthful, have
simply mentioned a fact in their history connected with
one of their own direct ancestors. Salomon, or Sala
man, was an Arabian patriarch and the direct ancestor
of Rabiah al-Faras, and only fourth in descent from
Ismail, having been the son of Nebat, the son of
Hamal, the son of Kidar, son of Ismail, and lived
some six centuries before the time of Solomon, king of
Israel. This is one of those little incidents which show how
necessary a knowledge of the history of the Arabs is to
understand the history of the Arabian horse.
With reference to my subject, a certain Arab, re
siding in Calcutta, whose family had migrated from the
province of Najd some eighty years ago, with other
families, and had settled at Zaobair, twelve miles from
Bassorah, under their own appointed Shaykh, in a letter
to the Oriental Sporting Magazine, partly in explana
tion of a former letter, in which he had related the
account of " Al-Khamseh " having had its origin from
five mares of Salomon, scouts the idea that Salomon was
any other than the Arab. He says, " I am not a little
amazed at Palgrave laughing at such tales" (vide Oc
tober number, 1869), and that in Najd it was said that
Solomon went to the Arabians for horses, instead of

The Arabian Horse. 291
their going to him. " Why, the idea itself is absurd, and
none but the most ignorant and unlearned people could
have uttered such an expression. Salomon himself was
an Arabian, and who could have been greater than
himself, that he should have gone to the Arabians for
horses ? " Still, from some remarks by the editors, it
can be seen they had failed to see that the Arab was
writing of that Salomon who was a great patriarch of
his race, merely, I conjecture, because they were thinking
of the great king of Israel.
The statement that Solomon went to the Arabians
for horses arose, if I remember right, from a reference,
or from a quotation from a conversation Mr. Gifford
Palgrave had with a negro, who showed him the mares
of Feysul ibn Sawood at Riad. The former having
spoken of the account of the breed of Arabians being
descended from Salomon's stables, the negro, evidently
understanding the king of Israel to be meant, replied,
" He should say Solomon was more likely to have gone
to the Arabs for horses than they to him."
There are some who affect to consider that horses
were not known in Arabia until a recent date ; for
example, Youatt states that "so late as the seventh
century the Arabs had few horses, and those of little
value." But history says otherwise, when it records the
fact that Rabiah al-Faras had the horses of his ancestors
allotted to him. Reference to the accompanying table of
descents will show that David, king of Israel, was pro-

292 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
bably, or might have been, contemporary with Rabiah
al-Faras.

Abraham.

Isaac 

1. Ishmael.

Jacob 

2. Kidar.

Judah 

3. Hamal.

Pharez ...

4. Nabet.

Hezron {<*£**}

c, , ( owners of the
5. Salaman { five Keheilets.

Ram ...

6. Alhamaisa.

Amminadab ...

7. Alyasa.

Nahshon

8. Odad.

Salmon

9. Oddo.

Boaz 

10. Adnan.

Obed 

II. Maad.

Jesse 

12. Nazar,

[ on whom were en-

David 

13. Rabiah j tailed the horses of

( his ancestors.

14. Solomon (B.C. 1033)

So that, more than a thousand years before Christ, his
tory not only records that horses were in Arabia, but
specifies a certain class — the horses of Rabiah's ancestors ;
and Salaman, the direct ancestor of Rabiah, whose five
Arabian mares founded the select family of "Al-
Khamseh," was of the same number of descents from
the patriarch Abraham as Hezron, the grandson of
Judah, who flourished about the year 1635 B.C., so that
an authentic family of horses has been preserved in
Arabia for 3500 years.
Thus written history informs us that, a thousand
years before the Christian era, horses were allotted to
and entailed upon a certain family. The Arab account
states that a special breed or family was established, by
The Arabian Horse. 293
the selection of five mares which belonged to Salaman,
the ancestor of the family, to whom, later, an allotment
was made — determined by history to have been some six
centuries before — and tradition says that upon Ismail,
who was the direct ancestor of Salaman, the owner of
" The Five Mares" lamenting over his barren heritage,
the desert of Arabia, he was reassured and consoled by
the announcement that the most valued gift to man had
been reserved for him, which he subsequently discovered
in the horse of the Kuhl race, upon his arrival at Hejaz.
Besides "Al-Khamseh" being the select family by
which the Kuhl race has been preserved and authentic
ally handed down, I think there is a select family of
" Al-Khamseh," which is that possessed by the Anazah ;
for with regard to the horses which were entailed upon
Rabiah al-Faras, considering the number of descents
between Salaman and Rabiah al-Faras, it is probable the
special allotment did not consist of the whole race or
breed descended from Salaman's Five Mares, but of such
only as had come down from Salaman to Rabiah
through ancestors, in direct descent from father to son,
or, if such be not intended, that possibly some further
selection was deemed advisable, and made probably by
public consent. These were probably entailed upon
Rabiah al-Faras to secure within certain bounds the
blood of the five Keheilets, which had probably in the
course of some generations become dispersed among
many kindred families of Arabs from Adnan. This
would show, it Is true, two divisions in the select family
of "Al-Khamseh," which division or classes I believe,

294 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
however, to exist : first, the general family of " Al-
Khamseh," which is to be found among most Badaween
tribes and tolerably freely dispersed throughout Arabia ;
secondly, a more precise or select class among the
Anazah race.
The text of history — " Rabiah, surnamed al-Faras
(' of the horses ') because he obtained the horses from his
ancestors by hereditary law " — not only points back
wards to "Al-Khamseh," formed from " The Five" mares
of his ancestor Salaman, but, I think, indicates some
thing more definite than a general consignment of the
whole race of "Al-Khamseh," increased during an in
terval of some five or six centuries.
It does not appear why Rabiah was selected from
the sons of Nazar, his father ; he would appear to have
been third, or perhaps the fourth son, rather than the
eldest born, but he and his brethren were fourth in
descent from Adnan (the ancestor up to whom descents
are usually traced). But had the allotment not been
made to Rabiah, but to Aijad, the eldest son of Nazar,
instead, the horses would have been carried by him to
Erack, to which country or district Aijad betook himself
with his family. Likewise if no consignment by law had
been made, and Modar, the second son and direct an
cestor of the Koraish and of Mohammed, had inherited
them, solely or conjointly with his brothers, the horses
might probably have descended to the Koraish at
Mekka, on the one hand, but in such a restricted
locality and in a district incapable of supporting any
number of horses the especial selection would have

The Arabian Horse. 295
dwindled away, and would probably have become very
degenerate ; it might, on the other hand, have been
dispersed to various districts by the numerous tribes
and families which came from Kais Aylon — the othet;
son of Modar, mentioned in history — to Erack, to the
banks of the Tigris at Mosul, and to the north of
Syria. But to have entailed them upon Rabiah was a
fortunate or wise step ; for no other conclusion can be
arrived at but that the horses descended from Rabiah
through his son Asad to his grandson Anazah, whose
race inhabited Khaibar, and afterwards spread all over
the pastures of Central Arabia (Najd), which race possess
the best horses. Thus, by a most fortuitous arrange
ment, the select breed formed by a selection from the
original and universal pure breed of Arabia, the Kuhl
race, or a portion of it, or a still more definite selection
from it, has been preserved and handed down to the
present day by that great and peculiarly exclusive
people, the great Anazah race.
Whether the era of Keheilet Ajuz was before or since
the days of Rabiah, and if before, whether the horses
inherited by Rabiah were solely from her, I cannot say.
But it certainly appears to me that a special selec
tion of horses does exist in the Anazah tribes, and
their tenacity and persistency in keeping it pure and
select is shown by their refusing to acknowledge, or to
return to, any strain which has departed from them into
other hands.
The Keheilan blood among the Anazah tribes seems

296 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to proceed from them to other tribes, and thus the
Anazah horse influences and affects all other strains
(more or less) which there may be inside or outside of
"Al-Khamseh," but never returns to the Anazah.
The term "Al-Khamseh" (The Five) has reference
only, I consider, to the five original mares of the Arab
patriarch Salaman ; it embraces all authentic lines of
descent from "The Five," but does not infer that there are
necessarily five families, or only five, at the present day.
I think there is not any attempt on the part of the
Badaween, such as the Anazah, to retain five families
only as representatives of the original five, or indeed to
limit the number of families or strains in "Al-Khamseh."
These are very numerous ; and when any such have es
tablished a well-merited reputation, and especially when
other strains have sprung from them in turn, it appears
to me that such often become leading families. On the
other hand, I think it is quite possible that a name or
family might cease to have a place in "Al-Khamseh"
under some circumstances, i.e. it might cease to be
considered worthy by the Anazah.
The blood of the five original mares collectively
may have come down through five sources, bearing
different names (original or otherwise) — not that lines
from the original mares were kept distinct from
each other otherwise than in name — from the custom
of calling the offspring after the family of the dam ; or
from the period of the Keheilet Ajuz it may have been
preserved, as some suppose, through that one source.
The accompanying chart may make the matter more

The Arabian Horse.

297

clear ; the roll of names which follows is a tolerably
complete one of the families and strains considered and
said to be In " Al-Khamseh " — of many there is no
doubt — and is so arranged as to show them equally
well, whether all are considered from Keheilet Ajuz or
from four other lines collateral with hers, from the
original " Five." /Keheilan\ or Kuhl
Race.

From whence five mares
Patriarch, called "Al-
Five," whose descendants

of Salaman, the Arabian
Khamseh," or " The
formed one select family.

Collectively called
"Al-Khamseh."

The blood of these has either come down through five
lines bearing the original names, or substitutes of a later
date, corresponding with the five original mares, or
through one descendant-^the Keheilet Ajuz.

1. Keheilet Ajuz.
Keheilet Heife.
Keheilet abu Soara.
Keheilet al-Esheir.
Keheilet Kroash.
Keheilet Shalua.
Keheilan al-Denais.
Keheilan al-Nowak.

Keheilan Tamri.
Keheilan Hadali.
Keheilan NowakDeber
Keheilan Jaizi.
Keheilan al-Muson.
Keheilan abu junub.
Keheilan Moyel.

298 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.

1. Keheilet Ajuz — continued.
Keheilan Dahara.
Keheilan Dabian.
Keheilan al-Ghazala.
Keheilan Shenin.
Keheilan Anazah al-
Derwish.
Keheilan Ras al-Fa-
dawi.
Keheilan Jehab al-
Tair.
Keheilan Rodan.
Keheilan Hrmaer.
Keheilan Mendil.
Keheilan Hamad.
Keheilan Haloadj.

Keheilan Abub.
Keheilan Jahari.
Keheilan Mahid.
Keheilan Haraka.
Keheilan Zuada.
Keheilan Kinian.
Keheilan al-Shaieh.
Keheilan Aurif.
Keheilan Raowaha.
Keheilan Maijce
Hamad.
Keheilan Wadnan
Harsan.

These I understand to be just simple strains from
the Keheilet Ajuz branch, many of which I have
actually ascertained to be so,

Derived Ajuz.

from Keheilet

The Seklawi-Jedran Family.
Seklawi-Jedran.Seklawi-Obeiri. Seklawi al-Abd.

It is also believed to be
derived from Keheilet
Ajuz, and perhaps from
Seklawi-Jedran.

Also the following fami
lies, or secondary
families, understood
to be offshoots from
Keheilet Ajuz, and
strictly of "Al-Kham
seh."

Also

The Abayan Family.
' Abayan Sherakh.
Abayan Libneh.
Abayan Harreish.
Abayan Zahaine.
Abayan Fadaha.
Abayan Roajieh.
Abayan Obeideh.

Dahman abu Amr.
Dahman Shawan.
Dahman Moadjil.
Dahman Khomais.

Abu Arkab.
Abu Arkab Swerha.
Abu Arkab al-Nadah.

The Arabian Horse. 299
1. Keheilet Ajuz — continued.
And it is believed also / Rishon Sherabi.
the following : — \ Rishon Arjashi.
{Rabdan al-Sheb.
Rabdan Mashejed.
Rabdan Zeliah.

Also

Twaissan al-Kami.
Twaissan Kyal.

f Milliah.
Also j Milliah Sharbons.
[ Milliah Taboor.
2. Manakhi Family. Manakhi Hedruj.
Manakhi Sladgi.
Manakhi ibn S'beyl.
Manakhi Sadlah.
3. Hadban Family or Strain, but certainly of "Al-
Khamseh." Hadban Euzehi.
Hadban al-Fert.
Hadban Mushaileh.
Hadban Ghassil.
Hadban al-Zaile.
4. Jelfon or Jalfon Family.
Jalfon Stom al-Balad.
Jalfon Dahwah.
5. Homdani Family. Homdani Simri.
Homdani Jassel.
Let me repeat here, that all that are strictly of and
in " Al-Khamseh " are veritably Keheilan ; that some
incline to the opinion that there are still five distinct
families, which are not actually kept distinct but have
separate distinctive names, from the custom of calling
all animals after the family of the dam; that the Keheilet
Ajuz and her many strains being one, and that, having

300 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
ascertained the Seklawi family, containing the three names
I have given, to be of Keheilet Ajuz, and believing the
Abayan to be also from Keheilan Ajuz, I have ventured
to class them with the Keheilet Ajuz line, as one of
the five. Let me repeat, moreover, that some incline to
the opinion — among them Djabery Zadah Mohammed
Ali (Effendi) — that all the families and strains given in
the foregoing race are descended from Keheilet Ajuz;
and I must state that Djabery Zadah Mohammed Ali,
who published in Arabia a short account of the Arabian
horse, with a chart, gives a longer roll of names than
I have shown, some of which I have not included be
cause I had great doubt of their authenticity or correct
ness ; so again I wish to observe that, although I have
heard that all the names I have shown are of "Al-
Khamseh," I am not sure whether several of them would
not be discarded by the Anazah.
I have even myself some doubts as to Jelfon and
Homdani, not perhaps whether they are in " Al-Kham
seh," but as to the place they hold and how they are
esteemed. The distinguishing names of heads of families and
strains are either those of the original owners or of
subsequent substitutes, or mark some peculiarity and, in
some cases, events. Thus Homdani are the horses of a
certain Homdan ; Manakhi are the horses descended
from the " long-necked one."
Although all in "Al-Khamseh" are Keheilan (and may
be possibly, or according to some, Keheilan Ajuz), the
generic term Keheilan is seldom added to the Hadban,

The Arabian Horse. 301
Manakhi, Jelfon, and Homdani families ; but Keheilan is
almost always used as a prefix to Ajuz — thus, " Keheilet
Ajuz " — and most generally to a great variety of her
sub-families. It cannot be taken as a proof that the
other families are collateral with Keheilet Ajuz and not
descended from her, or for vindicating the authenticity
of a more recently established family, because secondary
families undoubtedly Keheilet Ajuz are generally men
tioned by their specific names only. Thus, Seklawi,
although of Keheilet Ajuz, has seldom the prefix of
Keheilan ; nor has Abayan generally, nor Dahman abu
Amr and others this prefix. Euphony may be a general
guide which is quite Semitic, although I have even heard
Badaween sometimes speak of a horse or mare shortly
as "Ajaz." But I think there is a kind of rule to place
Keheilan before such names as are those of simple
strains, genuine, but such as have not established any
branches or divisions, and that when a family has es
tablished itself by offshoots, Keheilan is dropped, except
when emphasis or proof is required.
Although " Al-Khamseh " is acknowledged in Arabia
as the authentic record of the Keheilan race, i.e. of the
pure breed of Arabian horses, whether there are other
strains of Kuhl or Arabian blood collateral with, but
outside and not incorporate in " Al-Khamseh," holding
to some extent a similar relation to "Al-Khamseh"
as I think that select class does to that more select
portion possessed by the Anazah race (or perhaps,
as it may be, to the Keheilet Ajuz), is a question well
worth considering.

302 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
I consider that such collateral blood of the Kuhl
race, or the remains of it, may and does probably exist
in certain districts, and among certain communities of
Arabs, scattered about in neighbouring localities.
From long before the days of Salaman, the Arab
patriarch, until nearly the days of Mohammed, the old
kingdom of the Hamyarites in Yaman, with its depen
dent principalities, sovereignties, and states, formed a
distinct great and powerful empire in Arabia. The
horses among the Hamyarites and their dependencies
would be those of the general Kuhl race, or universal
breed of Arabia, before the formation of " Al-Khamseh "
In the days of Salaman ; and this blood, or the remains
of it, may still be found in Yaman and neighbouring
districts, and among those families and tribes which
migrated from Yaman to Erack and Syria, or the borders
of that country, and among some of those tribes which
passed beyond the Euphrates into Al-Jazirah, or Meso
potamia, and among the settled inhabitants derived
from such migrations, and among the scattered
families which may be the representatives of once
powerful tribes, such as Saleh, Amaleh, Ghasson, which
founded the Arab kingdom near Damascus, and those
which established that of Hira in Erack ; which
blood, although much crossed with that of "Al-
Khamseh," would still not be incorporate in it. In the
same manner, the blood of " Al-Khamseh," in Its wider
sense, as possessed by the Badaween tribes generally,
has been and is continually influenced by that other
class of " Al-Khamseh " (by the use of Anazah stallions),

The Arabian Horse. 303
that which has descended from the allotment made to
Rabiah al-Faras.

"Kheilan, or Keheilan."
It has been stated before that Keheilan is the
generic name of the genuine breed of Arabian horses.
Every genuine Arabian is Keheilan or Keheilet, and,
broadly speaking, only those of "Al-Khamseh" are
considered genuine by the true Badaween. But there
are one or two circumstances which have come before
me which, without further explanation, would prevent
me stating otherwise than broadly, or laying down as
indisputable doctrine, that a horse or mare must be of
" Al-Khamseh " to be considered a genuine Arabian. To
say that he or she must be Keheilan or Keheilet would, I
consider, be perfectly correct and safe, as is also, I think,
the opinion that the Anazah will use no other blood than
that which Is bred within their tribes. Keheilan denotes
a genuine Arabian horse, Keheilet a genuine Arabian
mare, no matter what the specific strain may be ; but It is
not sufficient of itself to establish identity. The special
family or strain would have to be given. One of these
circumstances was the fact that, although Homdani
seemed to be generally, if not universally, called of
"Al-Khamseh," Suleyman ibn Mirshid appeared to us
to ignore that strain or family altogether ; and there was
considered to be no better authority in the desert. Next,
a general absence — I think the exclusive absence — of
Jelfon in some of the Anazah tribes ; for I have no notes

304 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of having actually seen Jelfon in the Anazah, nor do I
recall having done so, although horses and mares of
this strain were very numerous in other tribes of
Badaween. And it has struck me as doubtful whether
Homdani may be horses descended from those of
Homdan, or the tribe of which he was the head or
founder — one of the seven which sprung from the sons
of Kahlan, the son of Saba, and brother of Hamyar,
fourth in descent from Yaarab, son of Joktan, the king of
Yaman — the blood from which had never been incor
porate in "Al-Khamseh;" or whether, among those
five original mares, there may not be still well-known
or authenticated Homdani blood outside "Al-Kham
seh," so that Homdani may be both inside and out
side of "Al-Khamseh." With regard to the Jelfon,
although without hesitation placed by some as mostly In
" Al-Khamseh," there is a vague idea — which I have seen
expressed, but which I have not been able to investigate —
that the Jelfon has a similar history, having belonged at
a very ancient period to some families in Yaman, and
brought from thence by some of the numerous migrations ;
and in this case there may be Jelfons also within and
without " Al-Khamseh." But as a rule, and a very safe
one, any strains of Arabian blood which may still exist
in certain parts of Arabia, or in neighbouring districts,
which are not of " Al-Khamseh," and which it has been
presumed do exist to some extent, are not reckoned by
the Bedaween, nor would they be accounted by them, as
Keheilan ; but I am not prepared to say that such might
not be considered or called Keheilan by others, for it is

The Arabian Horse. 305
quite possible that the Kuhl race, i.e. the general or uni
versal race of Arabian horses, was called Keheilan, i.e.
sprung from Kyi or the descendants of the Kuhl race,
before the formation of "Al-Khamseh" by the five
Keheilets or Arabian mares of the Arab patriarch
Salaman. Kuhl or Kuhal (antimony) was evidently the original
conception deemed to be descriptive of the Arabian horse,
and as distinguishing him as a race. Hence the race
Kuhl, i.e. the race of horses with skins in colour like
antimony ; then Keheilan, which is the diminutive from
Kuhl ; but whether the term Keheilan was first used
when " Al-Khamseh " was formed, and whether up to that
time the breed had simply been called Kuhl, I cannot
say ; but at the present time the term is used to denote
the genuine Arabian horses of " Al-Khamseh."
The very serious discrepancy and inconsistency
which are apparent in writings on this subject in using
the " Kahayle," evidently intended for the same as
Kuhl, sometimes to express the whole breed of Arabian
horses, at another time to designate one special family
or breed of the five of that race, are thus satisfactorily
explained. The first idea, which afterwards became accepted as
the name for the dark-skinned horse, was Kuhl ; then
Keheilan, the diminutive, was used, and primarily to
express the whole race, but now generally to denote
those horses only which are of " Al-Khamseh ; " and
lastly Keheilan Ajuz (or Keheilet Ajuz in the feminine) —
not Ktthl or Keheilan — is the name of one especial
x

306 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
family of the Keheilan race of "Al-Khamseh," and is
either one of the five families, or is the one source
from "The Five" ^Al-Khamseh") from which all the
acknowledged strains in " Al-Khamseh " have come.
The term Keheilan (from Keheilet) appears to me to
be used in the following manner : —
First, to denote simply but undoubtedly a pure bred
Arabian horse and a pure bred Arabian mare. Secondly,
to vouch for and confirm the genuineness of younger
strains and offshoots, to throw over them the protecting
arm of the parent tree, and to give them the influence
and support of the family name until they have become
sufficiently strong, established, and well known, so as to
be able to stand alone. And in one case it must have
been originally applied to the Ajuz to show what the
Ajuz ("the old woman ") was. Keheilet Ajuz is nothing
more nor less than " the Arabian mare of the old woman,"
and in this case (for which many reasons can be assigned,
and some are obvious enough) the generic Keheilan has
been retained, and is almost invariably used before Ajuz.
Next, the Ajuz being a mare descended from one of the
sources from the five original Keheilets which formed
" Al-Khamseh," it was necessary at first or well in her
case to protect her by the generic name of Keheilan.
But I have heard Badaween, talking quickly among
themselves, speak of her or her line of blood shortly thus
— Ajuz. So again, in the many single strains (i.e. strains
with one name only) descended from her, it is usual,
and almost the invariable custom, to place the generic
name Keheilan before them — for example, Keheilan

The Arabian Horse. 307
Tamri, Keheilan Nowak, Keheilan Hadali, etc.* — where
as in other strains which have thrown off from them
selves other strains, or which have had second
denominating names given to them, the generic and
parental name is generally omitted, as for example
Dahman abu Amr, Arkab Swerha, and not Keheilan
Dahman abu Amr and Keheilan Arkab Swerha ;
but it would, I think, be more correct, if one spoke
of the Dahman family, or the Arkab families col
lectively and the Swerha strain, to place Keheilan
before them. This has been and is very perplexing, and
requires much sifting and discrimination before an
opinion can be arrived at. In such a matter one cannot
hastily jump at a conclusion ; many, I am sure, have been
entirely misled by it. We ourselves found we had been
wrongly taught, wrongly informed. We found in
several instances names supposed to be, and which we
had been told- were, those of strains unconnected with
either " Al-Khamseh " or Keheilan to be both Keheilan
and of " Al-Khamseh," and in ascertaining this from
the Badaween by asking them whether such a strain
was Keheilan, the answer was pronounced emphatically
as " Certainly Keheilan." So again, in the case of some
families which were supposed to be outside " Al-
Khamseh," and those in " Al-Khamseh " not Keheilan,
the answers of the Anazah were, " Certainly of ' Al-
Khamseh,'" "Certainly Keheilan;" and again, with regard
* It is also explanatory. Tamri means "descendants of dates or
palm trees."- To describe a horse of the Tamri strain it is said "a
Keheilan horse of the Keheilans called Tamer." See pedigree at end.

308 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to Seklawi-Jedran, "Most assuredly of Keheilet Ajuz."
The surprise and astonishment at such points not being
understood or misunderstood was exhibited by the
Anazah Badaween by their eyes opened to the widest
extent and an almost wildly amazed expression of
astonishment. Although I have hopes that the account of the
Arabian horse, with the explanation of " Al-Khamseh "
and Keheilan, which I have given will present a tolerably
definite, conclusive, and connected history of the Arabian
horse, I think it will not be amiss to make some remarks
on certain points mentioned by former writers, for the
sake of explanation.
Count Rzewusky pronounced Keheilan to be the first
breed of Arabian horses. Keheilan, as the name of the
true Arabian horse, distinguishes him from all foreign or
alien breeds of horses ; in a more restricted sense, as a
term for horses of " Al-Khamseh," it indicates authen
ticity of breeding.
Prince P. Muskaw inclined to the belief that two races
of Arabian horses belonged to the first rank, namely, the
real Nedschdis, bred in the province of that name, and the
Kaheyl to be found in the desert between Bassorah and
Baghdad; to the former he assigned five breeds, to the
latter four. (It is worthy of note that to the former, the
Najd, there is an allusion to a certain five breeds.)
Others think that the Anazah and Najd are the two first
and rival breeds, and some assert the Najd to be distinct
from every other in Arabia. I must state here, on the
authority of the Anazah Shaykhs, that there is no dis-

The Arabian Horse. 309
tinct breed called Najd. Najd is the name of a pro
vince only. I think the error or misconception is thus
explained. Until the formation of the Wahaby sect in
Najd, the Anazah tribes held exclusive possession of the
pastures of Najd. The horses of the Anazah, by uni
versal consent, are the best in Arabia. The Anazah
being connected with the province of Najd, their horses
in time became, by many, to be considered of the soil
instead of the people. To this day the best horses in
Najd are Anazah horses. The Anazah have no other
horses but those descended from " The Five."
As to the race Kaheyl mentioned by Prince P. Mus
kaw between Bassorah and Baghdad, I think it must be
understood that the prince had been informed that in
that district (in which there are many broken up and
dispersed families of Arabs, and horses of foreign breeds
and doubtful blood) were to be found certain families of
horses, either of the race Kuhl, but not incorporate in
*' Al-Khamseh," or certain Keheilan horses of " Al-
Khamseh," or perhaps some of both kinds, which were
considered in that district, between Bassorah and Bagh
dad, to be of equal breeding and excellence with those
of the Anazah in the Najd. And as the Anazah, who,
from holding sole right to the pastures in Najd, probably
had become identified with that province, use no blood
but their own, their horses, which by universal consent
are acknowledged to be the best, might to some extent,
and with some truth, be considered of a distinct breed,
as well as the best.
Since the rise of the Wahaby power, the Anazah

310 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia,
have not the same exclusive rights in the whole of Najd,
but have a much wider field, as during certain seasons
of the year they hold the rights of pasturage over the
whole desert from Syria to the Euphrates. We were
informed by Anazah Shaykhs that they no longer
esteem the horses of the Wahahees, and this is a very-
important fact. I think there are at least two reasons
for this : first, the Anazah do not value horses bred by
townsmen or any settled inhabitants ; and secondly,
because the horses in Najd generally, and those even
possessed by the families of Ibn Sawood (the ruling
one of the Wahahees) In particular, are not now ex
clusively Anazah horses.
It must be remembered that the family of Ibn
Sawood was Anazah, and their horses were therefore
those of the rest of their race ; but, as I understood the
Anazah Shaykhs, the horses of the Ibn Sawood are now
no longer entirely of their blood ; for they accept the
blood from other tribes of Badaween, since the Anazah
have ceased to hold exclusive right to the pastures of
that province.
With regard to the supposition that there are two
rival breeds of Arabs, the Anazah and the Najd, and
the superiority of high breed being sometimes assigned
to one and sometimes to the other, marked by that
distinguishing beauty of the head which has been
perhaps more generally accorded to the supposed Najd,
it is particularly worthy of note that the very highest
type of head is to be seen among the horses of the

The Arabian Horse. 311
genuine Anazah. A fine head, the greatest development
of brain, and the finest muzzles, with well-cut features,
perfectly set on to a beautiful neck, sharp well-cut and
well-placed ears, the best eyes, the longest and most
expanding nostrils, the cleanest jaws, and those set
widest apart, are the attributes of the Keheilan or
Arabian horse of the Anazah.
In this way do I interpret and understand the
following passage in Youatt : — " The most extraordinary
care is taken to preserve the purity of the breed.
Burckhardt states that the favourite mare of Savud
the Wahabee, which he constantly rode in all his
expeditions and was known in every part of Arabia,
produced a colt of very superior beauty and promise,
which grew to be the first stallion of his day. Savud,
howeyer, would never permit him to be used for the
purpose of breeding, because his mother was not of
pure blood ; and not knowing what to do with him, as
the Bedouin never ride stallions, he sent him as a present
to the Sherif." This I understand to mean simply that
this mare of the Sawood of that day was either not of
" Al-Khamseh," or perhaps the Sawood, as an Anazah,
did not consider her of pure blood because she had not
come from the Anazah, and not that she was of foreign
blood. It is also probable that at the period alluded to,
although the Ibn Sawood had commenced to ride other
horses than those of their own race, they had not com
menced to breed from such. The Sherif to whom it is
reported Ibn Sawood sent the horse was, of course, he of
Mekka.

312 Gleanings from the Desert -of Arabia.
Another author, M. Rosetti, quoted by Colonel
Hamilton Smith, " claims the very first rank for the
Saklawye race, distinguished for very long necks and
brilliant eyes" I cannot look upon the Seklawi as a
race. A family Seklawi-Jedran is one of the most
distinguished in "Al-Khamseh," and on the authority
of Suleyman ibn Mirshid, Shaykh of the Komasa
Sabaah Anazah, is a strain from Keheilet Ajuz ; but
there are several other strains or families going under
the name of Seklawi which, I believe, have no place in
"Al-Khamseh," and if in a way connected with the
Seklawi Jedran, have no claim to the same excellence
and ; favour. Be this as it may, the Seklawi-Jedran,
which is esteemed incomparably before all other
Seklawis, is not a race of itself, but is Keheilan, and
even of Keheilet Ajuz.
I have frequently observed that among townsmen a
very large proportion of their horses would appear to be
Seklawi. It is a well-known strain and one generally
appreciated, and, given the simple name of Seklawi
without any distinguishing adjunct, the townsman very
often does not know any more nor care to know more.
A Bedawee would put to you the pertinent question,
" What Seklawi ? " in the same way as he would ask,
" Which Keheilan ? " were a horse perhaps of unknown
breed called a Keheilan. Moreover, I have never
detected any peculiarity in the length of neck in the
Seklawi family, whereas the Manakhi are descendants
from " the long-necked one."
Prince P. Muskaw, in enumerating the five breeds

The Arabian Horse. 313
bred in the province of Najd, places Homdanje Symra —
manifestly the same as Homdani Simri —as one.

The statement so generally made, that there are
three breeds of Arabian horses, namely, Attechi, Kidishi,
and KocklanI, is well worth some slight comment, and,
as has been said before, in spite of much that is con
flicting and which has not been understood, there is an
undercurrent of truth in much that has been narrated
of Arab horses.
Now, Attechi and Kidishi are simply not Arabian.
The word Kidish is of Turkish origin, and its meaning
has been fully explained. Attechi is also Turkish, but
I have never heard it used, nor have I seen it except in
English books. It has a connection with horses, as
" At " is the Turkish for horse. But the Kocklani, which
is supposed by writers and authors to be a superior
breed of Arabian horses, heard of but not seen, reared
only by the Badaween of the remote or interior desert,
must be considered more at length.
Now, what are the Kocklani ? and what is the
meaning of the term ? Simply this : they are nothing
more nor less than the Keheilan or Arabian horses
belonging to and reared by the great Anazah race, and
perhaps some other tribes. The word Kocklani is the
adjective form of Keheilan, the diminutive from the root
Kohl, and used adjectively expresses the collective
breed of Arabian horses in "Al-Khamseh," unless
indeed those who use the term Kocklani intend the
horses of the Anazah solely or especially to be under-

314 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
stood, in which case the account given by travellers of
the best Arabian horses (Kocklani) being reared by the
Badaween in the remote desert is perfectly correct.
Their acquaintance with Attechi and Kidishi would
infer that they had visited such districts as Erack
and Syria, but to have taken such horses as Arabians
shows complete ignorance of Arabian horses. It is
true from such places as Oban the term " the Badaween
of the remote desert " might infer those of any part of
the desert beyond the region of settled inhabitants,
where certain tribes of Badaween are to be found, which
have been described at some length in a former chapter ;
but with more truth, and much more fully, the phrase
would have relation to the Anazah, who have the best
Keheilans, and who are in deserts still more remote.
The Anazah, however, do not allow that all their
tribes have horses in the same perfection : some, and im
portant ones too, are dependent in a great measure for
their horses upon other tribes of Anazah, who are larger
breeders ; for some tribes which use up a large number
of horses breed very few themselves. Thus we found
Jadaan ibn Mahaid, the Shaykh of the Fadan Anazah,
possessed of Sabaah mares.
Instead of three distinct breeds (two of which are
not Arabian), to have stated that there are three classes
of Arabian horses, or two divisions in the one authentic
class and the dispersed remains of one not now recog
nized, would have expressed the matter more correctly.
There have been three epochs in the history of the

The Arabian Horse. 315
Arabian horse, or of the Kuhl race, in Arabia : the
first up to the time of Salaman, the Arabian patriarch
or ruler ; the second from Salaman to Rabiah al-Faras ;
and the third from Rabiah al-Faras to the present time.
The horses most esteemed are the Keheilan of the
Anazah ; next, those which are truly Keheilan, and of
"Al-Khamseh," but not Anazah, to be found among
the Badaween tribes generally, and which are much
influenced by the first from the use of Anazah horses
as stallions ; and, lastly, any remains there may be of
the Keheilan race outside "Al-Khamseh" of Kuhl or
Arabian origin, the blood of which may still in many
instances be pure. This last class, or remains of a
class, is not recognized by the Badaween ; for nothing
is considered authentic which is not in and of "Al-
Khamseh," subject to some modification on a little point
to which allusion has been made — Homdani and Jelfon,
for instance. I am careful to say remains of the Kuhl
or Keheilan race, which existed up to the time of the
formation of " Al-Khamseh " (the five mares of Sala
man), but which was not incorporated in it ; for it is
scarcely possible for any such to exist which have not
been continually influenced by the use of stallions of
"Al-Khamseh." But, for all this, horses of this or
such a class would still be unrecognized by the -Bada
ween, although perhaps very generally called in Syria,
Erack, and other countries, and by those not well
informed, by the general name of Keheilan.
Of this class, principally, I consider, are the Arab
horses in Erack and Syria, those which are usually

o

1 6 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.

exported to India, and are taken to Europe, Egypt, and
other countries ; and to this class belong the A rab horses
generally seen by travellers and strangers in the East.
Of course there are other horses seen and exported, and
evidently taken for and accepted as Arabs, which have
no claim whatever to be of pure Arab or Kuhl blood.
After having seen the Keheilan or Arabian horse of
the Anazah in the desert, I am only reiterating and
confirming that which has been reported by travellers
and authors on the subject, apparently from hearsay
evidence, in stating my opinion that the " Kocklani,"
i.e. specifically the Keheilan of the Anazah, have been
and are seldom seen.
This review of the subject of the Arabian horse,
considered in connection with the whole history of the
Arab nation from earliest times (in both of which there
is a very similar instance of a special family spreading
over and influencing all others), including investigation
of their habits and customs ; the origin of and succession
of the three great families of Arabs — the lost tribes, the
Joktanic Arabs, and the Ismailitic Arabs ; the peculiar
character of the Badaween, their unchangeableness, and
especially the exclusiveness in ideas and feelings, and the
intactness of the Anazah race, will explain away many
discrepancies and conflicting accounts of the Arabian
horse, and will account for the horses of the Anazah being
the best and most highly esteemed, so that " Anazah,
Anazah, Anazah ! " is the cry in the desert. The touch
stone or guarantee of a horse — excellence, and undoubted
claim to purity and noble blood — will in a great measure

The Arabian Horse. 317
account for the fact that, although most of the Badaween
tribes have horses of " Al-Khamseh," they are neverthe
less decidedly of inferior appearance to those of the
Anazah. The fact also that they esteem Anazah
horses more than their own, and use their horses as
stallions in preference to their own, will account for
those horses of such strains as there may still be which
are not of "Al-Khamseh," being lightly esteemed by
the Badaween, and explain why such horses are pro
bably those alluded to by travellers and writers as
horses literally of unknown breed, not because they are
not Arab, but because they do not trace descent from
the authentic record of "Al-Khamseh." It will also
explain why the Badaween will have nothing to do with
horses of certain districts, and of certain tribes ; it will
even account for the significant shake of the head which
a Badaween will sometimes give when he sees a horse
that has come from Erack, Baghdad, or from some of
the Arabs in Syria, or the bordering villages. Upon his
opinion being asked, if he should say anything, he
does not always state he is not an Arab, but he will
sometimes say he is not noble ; and the especial allotment
of the horses from his ancestors made to Rabiah, the
grandfather of the Anazah race, sufficiently explains why
they, the Anazah, will use no other blood but that bred
in their own tribes.
There is a singular coincidence between the history
of the Arabs and of the Arab horse.
There were three different families of Arabs, but all

o

1 8 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.

of the same Semitic race : the old or lost Arabians ;
those of the Joktanic stock, who, although contemporary
with the former, long survived them ; and the Ismailitic
family from Abraham, which last has so prevailed, that
if they have not altogether superseded the others, yet their
influence has prevailed above the others. And in the
history of the Arabian horse there has been the general
race of Kuhl; the formation of "Al-Khamseh," super
seding all that was not incorporate in it ; and, lastly,
from " Al-Khamseh " the horses of Anazah, which have
prevailed above the others.
This account of the Keheilan race and of "Al-
Khamseh," compiled after a very careful study of the
subject, from information collected from the best
sources and from the practical experience of eye-wit
nesses among the Anazah and other Badaween in the
Arabian desert, I venture to put before my readers
on the plea provided for me by Abulfeda, that "All
knowledge of that which is not wholly known is not
to be abandoned ; knowledge of part is better than
ignorance of the whole."

CHAPTER II.
NOTES ON THE FAMILIES IN "AL-KHAMSEH."
THE families and strains of blood which have been
shown in the roll of " Al-Khamseh " are in several in
stances variously esteemed by different tribes of Anazah
and other Badaween, and are not always spoken of
under exactly the same names.
The mother family of Keheilet Ajuz — that is, the
main or leading strain without any further specific
adjunct — appears to be equally esteemed by all. There
is nothing to surpass it.
The term Keheilan or Keheilet is generally added to
every individual horse or mare of such strains of blood
as have to some extent become separate or distinct
from a primary family by being in the possession of
certain families or individuals whose names they may
bear, or as may haye names to commemorate some
event or feat and have not perhaps become established
as secondary families, for the double purpose of brief
ness in description and for noticing the authenticity
Of the blood. Thus, Keheilet-Nowak is a Keheilet

320 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
or Arabian mare of the Nowak family, instead of
Keheilet Ajuz al-Nowak, an Arabian mare of the Keheilet
Ajuz blood in the Nowak family. There are apparent
anomalies in "Al-Khamseh" which are perplexing. I
am convinced, however, that they are capable of ex
planation ; but, as I warned my readers, it is probable
only some among the Anazah do fully ttnder stand " Al-
Khamseh." It appears to me that although there are numerous
offshoots from the Keheilet Ajuz, each with a specific
name, there is still a main line or strain of descent
carried on of Keheilet Ajuz without any other dis
tinguishing name, and that the name Keheilet Ajuz is
sufficient to mark any such horse or mare ; and when a
horse is described as Keheilan Ajuz simply, it generally
means that such a one is of the main line of descent ;
whereas, in all or almost all other families in " Al-
Khamseh," to mention the general family name is not
sufficient. Thus, in the cases of the Manakhi, the Had
ban, the Jelfon families, and the secondary one of Sek
lawi, were a horse to be described only as one of those
families, as a Seklawi or Manakhi, the question would
immediately follow — Which Manakhi ? Which Seklawi ?
as if in these families there were no main or leading lines
of descent carried on, but that they were all divided
into branches, each of which had a separate designation.
Thus it would appear that Manakhi must either be
Manakhi Hedruj or of some other specific name ; and
Seklawi must be Seklawi-Jedran, or with some other
approved adjunct. In the case of the Seklawi family this

Notes on the Families in "Al-Khamseh." 321
is especially necessary, for I think there are other Seklawi
families or strains which are not in "Al-Khamseh"
and may have no relationship to the Seklawi-Jedran.
The Seklawi-Jedran, on the authority of Suleyman
ibn Mirshid, the Shaykh of the Komasa Sabaah Ana
zah, and leader of all the tribes, " Shaykh of Shaykhs"
"The Shaykh" par excellence, and who was one of
those thoroughly versed in the strains of Keheilan blood,
is a secondary family from Keheilet Ajuz. He assured
us that Seklawi-Jedran was certainly of Keheilet Ajuz ;
and I think the Seklawi-Jedran, forming with Seklawi-
Obeiri and Seklawi al-Abd a cognate group, is the only
Seklawi recognized by the Anazah.
Although I think that all strains and families in "Al-
Khamseh " must be recognized, and as far as we saw
were esteemed among several tribes of Badaween we
visited, I could not help noticing that among the Anazah
certain families seemed to be but little regarded. There
can be no doubt that some especial strains were equally
esteemed by all Anazah, as well as other Badaween, and
it is possible that others which were not so universally
regarded with favour may have their partisans in par
ticular tribes.
Jelfon and Homdani did not appear to us to be in
general favour in the Anazah. Horses of the former
family were sufficiently numerous in many other tribes
of Badaween we visited, but I do not remember to have
seen any in the Sabaah ; but, for all that, other portions
of the Anazah race may have them and value them,
T

322 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
though on this point I am not sure. In the neighbour
hood of Damascus, it was reported to us, there were more
Arab horses of the Jelfon family than any other. Of the
Homdani we saw but very, few, and these were not seen
collectively, but scattered about. One mare, and she
was a fine one and a beautiful creature, was said to have
come from the Ibn Hiddal Anazah, which is a family in
the great Bisher branch of the Anazah race, from which
too the Sabaah and Fadan tribes originally sprung ; yet
when we mentioned Homdani to Suleyman ibn Mirshid,
he shook his head. He evidently did not esteem the
family, and appeared to us to displace it and to substi
tute for it Keheilan Arkab Swerha. As I said before, the
few mares and one horse we saw of this family were
isolated animals, and, unlike the Jelfon, did not seem to
be common among those tribes of Badaween who are in
the desert between Syria and the Euphrates ; at least,
we did not see them. Like the Jelfon, there are, as far
as I heard, only two strains in each family. In the
Jelfon, that called Stam al-Bulad is most esteemed, and
in the Homdani, that with the distinguishing name of
Simri was said to be the more highly thought of.
The horses we saw among the Sabaah were princi
pally those of Keheilet Ajuz and of certain of the special
strains from the mother line ; of the Seklawi-Jedran
group, of the Abayan, Manakhi, and Hadban families.
All Badaween, as well as all Anazah, equally value
the direct or main line of Keheilet Ajuz. There did not
seem to be any deviation from this general rule. It was
held in the highest estimation.

Notes on the Families in i Al-Khamseh." 323
Of the simple or distinct strains from the mother
family of Keheilet Ajuz we found the following to be
highly esteemed, and I think to some extent those most
numerously represented : Nowak, Tamri, Hadeli, Adde-
nais (i.e. Al-Denais, but strictly pronounced Addenais),
Dahman abu Amr, abu Junub, abu Arkab, Haloadj,
Milliah, etc. Of the Nowak there is an especial strain
in great repute called Dabah Nowak, and I believe not
generally to be found except among the Sabaah Anazah,
the Dabah being a family among the Sabaah, if not actu
ally of the Komasa tribe. Tamri, i.e. the Keheilans of the
family of Tamer (which means literally " a ripe date "),
we found in the Komasa tribe and heard of in the
Ruallah tribe, which tribe was a family of the Jelas
Anazah, but generally associated with and accompanying
the Walud Ali branch of the Anazah race. The Tamri
strain is much prized. Hadeli we did not see in the
Sabaah — it is not common ; the Hrissa Anazah possess
the strain and esteem it. Al-Denais, or Addenais,
which is simply a strain of Keheilet Ajuz possessed by
the Denals family, is generally esteemed, as is also Abu
Junub ; and here we have an example of a name
derived from a personal or characteristic feature, Abu
Junub being the father or possessor of sides or flanks in
a horse, in this instance without doubt from the original
mare being particularly good in the flank. Dahman
abu Amr was certainly a favourite strain, and I think
one of those gradually assuming, if it has not already
done so, the state of a secondary family ; among the
Sabaah Anazah certainly horses of this strain were

324 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
much used as stallions. The other strains of the name of
Dahman we hardly heard mentioned. The Abu Arkab
is another strain the name of which marks an event —
the father or possessor of hocks, from the fact that
the animal to whom the name was given, although
wounded In the hocks or in one hock, performed an
extraordinary journey on foot. It is a strain much
esteemed ; there are two varieties of which we heard, and
that called Swerha-Abu Arkab Swerha, the Shaykh
Suleyman ibn Mirshid assured us, he esteemed beyond
any other in the desert, although among his own mares
there did not seem to be one of that strain. He gave
it the distinction by classing it as a leading family In
"Al-Khamseh." It appeared to us that Suleyman ibn
Mirshid, in repudiating the Homdani, placed, or was
inclined to substitute for Homdani, Abu Arkab Swerha
as one of the great families or principal divisions in
"Al-Khamseh " — at least, so we understood him. The
Milliah strain was in the Ruallah, and perhaps in the
Fadan, but did not appear to be in the Komasa tribe
of Sabaah ; the one filly we saw in Komasa, a truly
beautiful creature, came from the Ruallah Anazah.
The Haloadj strain we heard very highly spoken of,
but I do not remember to have seen either horse or
mare of that strain. Of the strain called Ras al-
Fadawi, of which family I understood was the Darley
Arabian, we saw some mares in another tribe and in the
hands of single Arabs, but I do not remember to have
seen any in the Sabaah ; but I think we saw some mares
of the Rabdan al-Sheb and Shwaiman Sabah strains.

Notes on the Families in "Al-Khamseh." 325
It is not intended in any way to limit the number of
good strains to those I have enumerated ; they are
only some of those which were prominently brought
before our notice.

The Seklawi-Jedran Family.
This is not a separate or original family of "Al-
Khamseh," but a secondary one from the Keheilet Ajuz
— so, at least, we understood from Suleyman ibn Mirshid,
the Shaykh of the Komasa Anazah — and, with the
Seklawi-Obeiri and Seklawi al-Abd, forms a cognate
group descended from three mares which belonged to
a certain man of the name of Jedran. It is probable the
three original mares were not only of the same blood, but
were also sisters. The Seklawi-Jedran is called after
the name of the owner ; the second mare was given by
Jedran to his brother Obeir, on the condition that she
and her descendants should be called after him, and not
by the name of Jedran ; the third mare Jedran either
gave or left to his servant or slave. Hence the name
of the strain, " The Seklawi of the slave."
Most Badaween tribes hold all three strains of this
cognate group in equal esteem. Thus even Shaykh
Mohammed ed Daheb, of the Walud Ali Anazah, told
us there could be no other difference between the
Seklawi-Jedran and the Seklawi-Obeiri strain than be
tween the children, or their descendants, of two sisters ;
but there is a lurking prejudice in some of the Anazah
tribes against the Obeiri strain, which time even now,

326 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
after the lapse of ages, has not obliterated ; and such
tribes — the Sabaah among the number — most decidedly
give the preference to the Seklawi-Jedran strain, and
if they do not equally esteem Seklawi al-Abd, they
prefer it to the Obeiri.
In the Komasa tribe of Sabaah Anazah, the family
Ibn Nederi is noted as possessing a special strain of the
Seklawi-Jedran blood, and horses and mares of the
strain of Seklawi-Jedran ibn Nederi are most highly
prized. There are certainly other families of Seklawi, but
they appeared to us not to be recognized by the Anazah
tribes as of " Al-Khamseh ; " namely, Seklawi-Ephaifeh,
Seklawi abu Snoon, Seklawi Nagemah-Sebah, Seklawl-
Enzehi, Seklawi-Sodan, Seklawi-Doahi, and Seklawi-
Sabani. These probably, with perhaps the exception
of Seklawi-Sabani, had no connection with the Seklawi-
Jedran group, and I think are only in districts in the
neighbourhood of Syria and the Euphrates and Erack.
With regard to the Seklawi-Sabani, we were told that
the strain possessed (at one time) by the Ibn Sabani
family was struck off the roll, as it were, of " Al-
Khamseh " by the Anazah, because it had been out of
the Anazah tribes for forty years.
The Abayan Family.
This I consider to be of the Keheilet Ajuz. It is
certainly not an original family name, and, like the

Notes on the Families in "Al-Khamseh? 327
Seklawi-Jedran, has become an established secondary
family. I am not sure if it be not even a family derived
from the Seklawi-Jedran.
There are several strains of Abayan, but the Abayan
Sherakh seemed to be the most esteemed. I consider
Abayan Sherakh to be the name of the family, and not
Abayan alone, and that the other strains are not
collateral with, but are derived from Abayan Sherakh.
The name Abayan is derived from Aba, "cloak." Abayan
or Abayeh expresses either horse or mare of that family,
as the case may be, and I should render it " the horse or
mare of the cloak." The name, it is said, was taken from
the following incident : — A certain Arab, most probably
of the name of Sherakh, being pursued, loosed his cloak
(the over garment worn commonly by all Badaween),
to relieve his mare from every impediment. The mare
outstripped the pursuers, when her rider was surprised
to find his cloak had not been lost, for it had been
caught by the mare's tail, which she carried in her
gallop high to a degree. Hence the name "the Keheilet
or Arabian mare of the cloak," or the cloaked mare,
more possibly, of a certain Sherakh.
We heard of a mare having been mistaken in the
distance for three horsemen riding close together at a
rapid gallop, but what had been taken for three horse
men turned out to be but one ; the head and neck and
tail of the mare, and the rider's body, which all appeared
to be on about the same level, having had the semblance
of three. Let no One laugh or smile at this or similar
accounts, for they are neither untruthful nor unreal.

328 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
I have seen a mare, an Abayan Sherakh, galloping loose,
with both head and tail high to an extent such as I
could hardly have believed had I not seen it ; her tail
was not only high, but seemed to be right over her back,
and, besides streaming out behind like a flag, covered
her loins and quarters. It was a splendid sight to one
who can appreciate a horse.
As a family or strain the Abayan has the reputation
of possessing horses and mares often of wonderful beauty
and very high speed. Abayeh would describe a mare,
of this family, but it might be spoken of as a Keheilet
Abayan, being equivalent to a Keheilet of the Abayan
family.
Hadban Family.
Of the Hadban family we saw horses of the Enzehi,
Al-Fert, and Ghafil strains ; and of its fine varieties we
heard that the first two are most esteemed. Although
we did not see many horses or mares of this family, it
seemed to be esteemed by the Anazah generally, and all
the horses we saw of it were good and fine animals.
Of the Manakhi.
The Manakhi appeared to us a favourite strain, for
both horses and mares of this family are to be found in
most tribes of Badaween ; and we thought, with the
exception of Keheilet Ajuz, there were more horses and
mares among the Anazah, certainly among the Sabaah,
of the Manakhi family than any other.

Notes on the Families in "Al-Khamseh." 329
Manakhi means Keheilans or Arabian horses
descended from the "long-necked one."
Manakhi Hedruj is the chief variety, and although I
am not sure, I think it is the parent family, and the
others are not collateral, but offshoots from Manakhi
Hedruj. I think Hedruj means of majestic appearance :
thus Manakhi Hedruj, " the horses of the long necks of
majestic appearance."
A family in the Sabaah Anazah of the name of Ibn
Esbeyl is noted for their horses of the Manakhi Hedruj
family, and we were informed that three other families —
Abu Gheideli, Abu Hordjell, and Stagi — have remarkably
fine strains of the Manakhi Hedruj, all derived from that
of Ibn Esbeyl family. The blood of the Manakhi family
as to be found very generally amongst most Badaween
tribes, but Manakhi Hedruj ibn Esbeyl is a select Anazah
strain, similar in relationship to Manaki Hedruj as
Seklawi-Jedran ibn Nederi is to the Seklawi-Jedran.
The Manakhi is a fine family undoubtedly.

CHAPTER III.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE KEHEILAN, OR ARABIAN
HORSE.
The following statements are based upon personal
observation of the horses of the Anazah, which people
by general consent are considered to have the best
in Arabia. They will serve generally for the Arabian
horse as a race, but in a marked and decided degree
for the horses of the Anazah.
In the Keheilan or genuine Arabian horse (speaking
in general terms from seeing a number of horses and
mares at one time), setting on one side what may be
called their great personal beauty, you are at once struck
by the general appearance of character, of blood or high
breeding — which features are very conspicuous — and their
great general length. "What reach, what stride these
horses, must have ! They are natural born racers," we
both exclaimed at once. One is equally struck by the per
fectly natural appearance of the Keheilan : he presents
in his form of undisturbed structure the evidence of his
origin from an uncontaminated stock, in the same manner

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 331
as do lions, tigers, and other animals which have been
left undisturbed in a free and natural state and have not
1
come under the destructive influence of man.
It is a treat to see such a horse, although I know
from experience many do not and cannot appreciate him
at first. This is owing to the fact that his natural
structure is different from that of the animals they have
been accustomed to admire, which are made up of points
some of which may be often very conspicuous and ex
aggerated, even while others are deficient, and which
exaggeration and deficiencies they look for in vain in the
Arabian. Throughout the whole frame of the Keheilan,
it is the extreme natural appearance of the horse, the
absence of any one predominant or conventional point
artificially produced, the beautiful balance of power and
symmetry displayed in his form, the just organization of
sensorial and structural functions, which cause him to be
so beautiful, so perfect an animal.
The head is very beautiful — not only pleasing to the
eye in its graceful outline, but beautiful from its grand
development of the sensorial organ, and the delicacy of
such parts as are more subservient. It is not particularly
small or short in its whole length, in proportion to the
size or height of the horse, but it is large above the eyes,
small and short from the eyes to the muzzle. The centre
of the eye more nearly divides the length of the head
into equal parts than is observable in other horses ; from
the top of .the head to the centre of the eye will often
measure as much as from the centre of the eye to just
above the upper edge of the nostril. The head of the

332 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
horse of the Anazah especially tapers very much from
the eyes to the muzzle, and the lower jaw does so equally
or even in a greater degree to the under lip, and if
these lines were prolonged, they would meet or cut each
other at a short distance only beyond the tips of the
nose. The nostril, which is peculiarly long, not round,
runs upwards towards the face, and is also set up out
wards from the nose like the mouth of a pouch or sack
which has been tied. This is a very beautiful feature,
and can hardly be appreciated except by sight ; when
it expands, it opens both upwards and outwards, and
in profile is seen to extend beyond the outline of the
nose, and when the animal is excited the head of this
description appears to be made up of forehead, eyes, and
nostrils. Such a head is often supposed to denote a violent
temper. It is the type, however, of the head of the
Arabian horse, and is, we thought, more marked and to
be seen more frequently among the Anazah tribes than
elsewhere. Every Arabian horse may be said to have a
high temper to some extent, but it is balanced or con
trolled by the power of the large and well-developed
cerebrum. The head I have described of horses we
have seen denotes the highest order of qualities — intelli
gence, energy, and unconquerable courage. It is almost
human in its expression of nobility, dignity, and sagacity.
Other horses have much fire, but it is but too often the
habitual and only expression, not one called forth by
occasion and controlled at other times by higher organs ;
indeed, a spirit of the highest order is characteristic of

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 333
the Arabian. With regard to the great development
of the upper part of the head and the fineness of the
muzzle, I have seen instances of the former measuring
nearly two and a half to one ; witness a measurement of
thirty-seven inches over the forehead and under jaws,
taken in a line horizontal with the bone, against one of
fifteen inches, or perhaps a line over, round the muzzle
above the nostrils, and of perhaps just over thirty-seven
inches round the forehead, and sixteen Inches, or just
under, round the muzzle : and there may be examples
of even a greater difference.
The frontal and parietal bones, or walls -of the skull
above, are large, bold, well developed, and often pro
minent. The brain cavity is capacious, giving an ap
pearance and power almost human. The nasal bones,
on the other hand, are fine and subservient to the
frontal, and of a delicate and graceful outline. The
orbits of the eye are large and prominent ; the eye is
full, large, and lustrous. It is very beautiful; the beauty
is not so much dependent upon the size of the eye
visible through the eyelids, as it is derived from its
depth and expression. The part of the eyeball seen
between the eyelids may not be so large as is often to
be seen in other horses, but it is very full ; standing on
one side of the animal, and a little behind, the fulness of
the ball and its prominence are very observable, and
when the animal is excited the eye displays much fire,
but it is seldom that any of the white is seen. The lids
are particularly fine, the eyelashes long and silky. The
face is lean and full of fine drawing. The muzzle is

334 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
particularly fine ; the lips long and thin (not fleshy) ; the
upper lip well cut or chiselled ; the lower lip small, well
formed, compressed, and terse. The nostril in a state of
repose is very long, beautifully curled, delicate, and thin :
when the horse is in action or excited, the nostril opens
very wide, and gives a bold, square, sharp, and vigorous
expression ; the lower jaws are fine, clean, and set wide
apart ; the cheek-bones are sharply cut ; the ears are
beautifully shaped, pointed, and well placed, and point
inwards in a marked and peculiar manner, which is con
sidered a point of great beauty, and a great sign of high
or pure breeding. The neck is of moderate length, and
of a graceful curve or gentle arch from the poll to the
withers ; it is neither a light, weak neck, nor a heavy
neck, but it is a strong, light, and muscular neck, with
the splenius muscle well developed. The junction of
the head and neck is very graceful ; the head is well
set on. The withers are high and run well back, are
well developed and not too narrow or thin. The back
is short; the loins are powerful, the croup high, the
haunch very fine, the tail well set on, and the dock
short. The quarters are both long and deep ; the gaskins
sufficiently full and muscular without being heavy,
ponderous, or vulgar ; the thighs are well let down ; the
hocks are clean, large, well formed, well placed, and
near the ground. The shoulders are long and powerful,
well developed, but light at the points ; the scapulae
are long and of a good slope, and broad at the base.
The arms are long, lean, and muscular; deep at the
elbow, which is well developed. The knees are large and

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 335
square and deep ; the trapezium, or bone at the back of
the knee, is very prominent. The legs are short, deep,
and of fair-sized bone ; the tendons and ligaments large
and well strung. The fetlock-joint is large and bold ; the
pasterns are long, large, sloping, very elastic, and strong ;
the feet wide and open at the heels, and not very high
in the desert. The chest is both deep and capacious,
and in the perfection of its form differs considerably
from that of any other kind of horse I have seen, not
excepting the English racer or thoroughbred horse ;
it is neither too flat and narrow, nor too round ; it is
a very happy and perfect medium, and of a beautiful
form in section, securing large capacity with great
elasticity. His body, or trunk, behind the chest is
small, but formed like a barrel. He is essentially
short above, but long below. The line from the withers
to the setting on of the tail is short compared with the
space of ground he stands upon from fore to hind feet.
The skin is fine ; the hair is short, soft, and silky : the
skin is seen through the hairs to a greater degree than
in other horses. The mane and tail are long, and hair
often very fine. The whole of the hinder parts, from
the haunch to the heels, taken collectively or in detail,
show great length. There is also a width of haunch
noticeable indeed not only in the horses of the Anazah,
but in most desert-bred Arabians in so marked a degree
as to be almost a distinguishing feature ; and many
horses commonly called or known as Arabs are de
ficient In this respect. The general appearance of the
Keheilan indicates the highest breeding and great

336 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
nobility. He is a horse of high courage, easily excited,
and of a nervous temperament, but his high spirit and
courage are tempered by his sagacity.
The Arabs are very particular with regard to three
points in connection with the head of their horse : the
Jibbah, or forehead ; the Mitbeh, or form of the throat at
its junction with the head ; and the shape, size, direction,
and attitude of the ears.
The Jibbah, or forehead, can scarcely be too large or
too prominent to please an Arab. The formation of
the frontal and parietal bones, which determine whether
a horse has a Jibbah, if not altogether peculiar to, is
most marked in the Arabian, and when seen in other
kinds of horses, as in the thoroughbred horse, it is
I think, evidence of Arab blood, and traceable to some
remote Arab ancestor. The shape of the Jibbah in
which the Arab delights, gives a large brain cavity, adds
greatly to the beauty of the head, and gives an expres
sion of great nobility ; and thus in this point, as in
others of the Keheilan, usefulness and beauty go hand in
hand — in him the expressions are synonymous. The
Jibbah, or forehead, is somewhat different in the horse
and the mare. In the mare it is usually rounder and
more decidedly prominent, often strikingly so, and de
scends in a graceful and easy line to the nasal bones.
When a horse has such a forehead he is said by the
Arabs to have a Jibbah.
The Mitbeh is a term used to express the manner In
which the head is set on to the neck, and especially
refers to the form of the windpipe, and to the manner in

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 337
which the throat enters or runs in between the jaws,
where it should have a slight and graceful curve. This
permits of a graceful and easy carriage of the head, and
enables it to be either brought in or extended, at will
or necessity, with almost or perhaps quite the same
prolongation as the neck. This, of course, gives great
freedom to the air passages : and the Keheilan is essen
tially a deep-breathed and a good and long-winded
horse. The ears to be perfect should be so placed that they
point inwards, so that the tips may almost touch ; the
outline of the inner side of the ear should be much
curved, and, as it were, notched about halfway down.
In the horse the ears are generally smaller and more
pricked ; in the mare they are usually rather longer and
more open.
These three features, Jibbah, Mitbeh, and ears of the
above description, go a long way to form a perfect head.
The hock of the Keheilan is large — may be called
very large ; for when you find a horse of fourteen hands
three inches with a hock often as large, which would
measure as much as the hock in many hunters of
sixteen hands, it cannot be anything but very large.
The point of the hock (os calcis) is well defined, and
often so prominent as at first sight to look almost
unnatural, as if it had been enlarged by accident.
And from the hock the tendon or back sinew runs
down to where it passes the sessamoids in a clean, well-
defined manner, which not only gives a very clean look,
but, I submit, acts in the horse with an advantage z

338 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
similar to that gained in the human subject by a well-
formed heel and arched instep.
We were much struck by the general development
of the fetlock-joint, pasterns, and feet, all of which are
pre-eminently good. It is not sufficient to say the
pasterns are long and elastic; all the above-named points
are larger and stronger and of greater development, and
as if more adapted for use than those in other horses ;
and the upper and lower pastern bones, in their direction
and conjunction with the foot (os pedis), appear to act
with greater advantage. There is great depth of leg at
the sessamoid bone, and the head of the shank-bone is
also large ; there is a marked combination of strength
and elasticity in these complicated joints, which appears
to be very peculiar to the Arabian horse.
Another thing we noticed (which I think of some
consequence) is that there was not that decided dis
parity in size between the hind and fore legs below the
hocks and knees, which is so often observable in many
of our horses, especially, I may say, in some of our
racers. Although the hind leg may be slightly deeper
than the fore leg, it is so in a less degree. On reflection, it
struck us as an admirable adaptation of parts to the dis
tinctive kinds of work they respectively have to perform ;
strength and bone in the fore legs are essential to
receive the additional weight thrown on to them by the
impetus given by the hind extremities when the horse
is in rapid motion ; and we thought the great reach of
the Arabian, propelled by the great power of his loins
and quarters, is amply provided for and counter-

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 339
balanced by the formation of the various parts of the
fore legs and fore hands as I have endeavoured to
describe them.
We remarked among the horses and mares we saw
of the Anazah, that we had not seen a single one with
an ewe or a weak neck even, not excepting such as
were in low condition and quite lean ; they had beautiful
necks and strong. Nor did we see among the horses of
the Anazah, nor, I think, in other Badaween tribes, any
horses which were cut-hammed ; yet among horses
passing under the name of Arab are often seen cut-
hammed animals. I believe that if the history of such
could be ascertained, it would be found that they were
not Arabians, nor bred in Arabia, but that their dams
were cut-hammed ponies or galloways of a mixed or
alien breed, the sires probably having been Arabian.
Nor do I remember to have seen any horses or mares
among the Badaween of a black colour, but in Syria and
in the Turkish districts we occasionally did see blacks,
and generally these were said to be Jelfon. I was struck
too with another feature — I am not, however, prepared to
say it is absolutely a distinctive one to be seen in every
Arabian, but it was noticed in so many instances that it
looks something like it — a line somewhat darker than
the general colour of the animal, to be seen in colt foals,
running in continuation of the mane along the spine, and
to be traced for some way even among the long hair of
the tail. I never saw it in a filly ; it seemed peculiar to
the male sex ; it is not obliterated with age ; it can be
traced in old horses and in those of a very dark colour.

340 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
It is totally different to the markings of the zebra,
quagga, or of any of the hybrids, or to the dark band to
be seen down the back of certain dun-coloured horses,
often accompanied by asinine stripes or markings ; it
appears rather as the first or primitive colour of the
animal, which tones away by almost imperceptible
degrees from the back to the belly : it may be seen
in lines on the males of other wild animals. At certain
seasons and as the horse ages, and dependent also in
some degree on his condition, the dark colour spreads
over the shoulders and upper part of the body, giving
on the shoulders and the junction of the neck at the
withers, and on the upper part of the body and quarters,
an appearance as if shaded with black which is most
noticeable in horses of bay colour.
The horses of the Anazah stand over a great deal of
ground, as also does the desert-bred Arabian generally.
We never saw one among the Anazah which stood with
the fore legs inclined backwards and much under the
body — which stood over, in other words — a thing, however,
which is very often considered to be quite characteristic
of the Arab horse. They all have a free, long, striding
walk, the hind foot, I may say, invariably overstepping
the place whence the fore foot on the same side has
just been raised many Inches, from twelve to eighteen
inches being a quite common distance, and in some cases
to an extent of two or even three feet, and at times, I
think, more. The longest stepping horse we saw was a
two-year-old colt — Seklawi-Jedran ibn Nederi. Watching
him walking hour after hour in the desert, we estimated

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 341
the distance he overstepped to be considerably beyond
three feet. ,
As to colour, I do not pretend to restrict it ; but among
the Anazah bay appeared to us to be the most general,
and, I think, is the favourite, colour among the Arabs.
Horses of a veiy rich dark bay, rather than a brown
colour, are not uncommon ; chestnuts and greys are less
numerous, and together would not equal the number of
those of a bay colour. But these colours were all dis
tinct, marked, and good. The Arabs like a decided or
a clear colour. In other tribes of Badaween the colour
among the grey horses was much less decided. Grey
horses were more numerous ; bay are thought not so
general a colour. In Turkish Arabia, which the Arabs
call Erack, grey horses appear to be so numerous that
grey might be said to be the usual colour.
Grogginess, or knuckling over at the fetlock-joint,
either before or behind, we did not see among Anazah
horses ; even those which showed signs of excessive
hard work were upright on their legs and sound in the
feet. Scars, enlargements from blows, and lesions are
often to be seen among the Anazah horses, and the
marks of the firing-irons on many parts of the body are
common enough. The actual cautery is the sovereign
remedy for almost all ailments. Scars from firing, of
the width of two fingers, and extending from the elbows
to the stifle, along the whole side and belly, are very
frequent ; besides these, there are cicatrices from wounds,
principally from the lance.

342 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
It is not uncommon for Arab horses to stand back,
more or less, at the knees. Many are stag-legged, in
fact. There is no prejudice among the Arabs against
such a formation ; many do not like it in England,
whilst others, and among them members of the
veterinary profession, do not object to it, and some even
prefer it. I am not sure if such a formation is not
generally accompanied with the best and most lasting
of legs, and we observed that when the knees were a
little back the heels were rather higher than usual.
This stag-legged formation was of two kinds : one in
which the whole of the fore leg, from the knee to the
pastern, inclined forward ; not only the metacarpal
bones, but the back sinews had the same direction, and,
in many cases, by the time the animal was fully grown
the leg had assumed an upright position. This kind
may be described as accidental and genital, rather than
structural. The other kind is that in which the back
sinew is perpendicular to the ground, and the meta
carpals only have the inclination backwards to the
knee, and this is further increased in some cases, and to
a certain extent, by the size and prominence of the head
of the shank-bone. This is a natural and structural
formation. All desert-bred Arabs, at least, have a long
striding, free walk. When trotting (which Is quite an
unusual pace among Arabs, as it is, indeed, to the
horse generally ; for, naturally, the horse does not go at
a trot for any distance : as a pace of the road and for
harness the trot has been artificially acquired), the hind
legs of the Arabian appear to be, and often may be, too

General Description of the Arabian Horse. 343
long, and there is too much reach for a pleasant trotting
pace ; yet, with good riding, some will trot grandly : but
it is far more labour to the Arabian than galloping, who
from the present length of the hind extremities, and his
reach, is essentially a galloper by nature, and the faster
the pace the more easy and the more true the action.
In height, the Arabian in the desert, or rather (to
confine my remarks more strictly to those we saw) the
Anazah horse, ranges from about fourteen hands one
inch and a half to fifteen hands, but generally just under
the latter height. We remarked that we did not see
any that we thought as low as fourteen hands, or even,
perhaps, fourteen hands one inch ; some we measured
proved to be fourteen hands three inches, which is a
very general height ; and several would be found, I have
no doubt, quite fifteen hands. The height hardly varies
a hand.

CHAPTER IV.
DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF CERTAIN ANAZAH
HORSES.
I have endeavoured to describe the whole race of
Arabian horses. The Arabian horse has been spoken
of as a collective race, and mention has been made
where he may be found ; he has been described as we
found him at different places and in various tribes. The
Keheilan of " Al-Khamseh " has been more particularly
referred to, and the Anazah horse in the abstract. The
choicest horses are to be found among certain tribes of
the Anazah race ; but it must not be supposed that all
horses, even among this select people, possess all the
points and features which I have noticed in perfection.
Sometimes all are found in one and the same animal ;
and in most the features I have described are to be
recognized in a greater or less degree, and beyond what
is seen in the horses of other tribes. A few sketches of
individual Anazah horses may be interesting, and will
also assist the more general description.
A rich dark bay or brown colt of the Hedeli strain,
at three years of age, was a fine colt, and gave promise
of growing into a magnificent horse. Beyond faint

Account of Anazah Horses. 345
saddle marks, he had no white ; there were a few grey
hairs in the form of a star in the centre of his forehead,
and a spot of bluish grey, about the size of a shilling,
on the tip of the nose between the nostrils, without hair.
covered only with down. This colt had a grand head,
without being strikingly handsome; the forehead was
well developed, without having a very prominent Jibbah ;
his eye was very good, without being very large ; the
nostril was fine and beautiful in the extreme ; the
Mitbeh, the junction of the head with the neck, was
also good1. He had magnificent shoulders and great
depth of chest ; his arms were long and muscular ; he
had the best of legs, large of bone, flat, clean, and with
large sinews ; good knees and hocks, good open feet,
a short back, long quarters, a long full tail, a swinging
walk, in which he overstepped more than two feet, and
a great stride in his gallop. He had the appearance
and all the points of a first-class race-horse, full of
quality, substance, power, and bone.
A rich dark bay mare of the strain of Dahman abu
Amr, without any white and unblemished, at six years
old, except that she wanted the prominent Jibbah or
forehead, was a very perfect animal, but her head was
good nevertheless. She came quite up to the standard.
She stood, I should say, quite fourteen hands three inches,
perhaps more ; was a very level grand' mare, with good
bone, and a very fine set. of legs. She had a dark bay
filly by her side, a year old, looking very promising. I
believe this mare was of the Dahman abu Amr strain
both on the side of her sire and dam.

346 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
The Nowak mares we saw were exceedingly blood
like, and so were those of the Dabeh family. A bay mare
of the Nowak strain, whose sire was of the Dabeh family,
was a very good specimen of the Arabian mare : she
stood about fourteen hands one and a half inches in
height. She was much disfigured by saddle marks, and
by having been fired. She was of a fine frame, and a
roomy mare. She had a fine and noble head ; a
magnificent eye ; a nostril not to be surpassed for
delicacy, for beauty of form, sharpness of outline, and
capability of expansion. She was excessively fine at
the muzzle, with the under lip small and compressed ;
her jaws were very deep and set very wide apart ; very
perfect ears ; a fine neck, with a good Mitbeh. She
had most perfect shoulders, elevated withers, a fine
haunch, and her tail was well set on. She was square
and broad across the haunch ; her hocks were good, but
without any striking development at the os calcis, so
often to be observed. Her arms were long and very
good. She had a beautiful colt foal by her side.
Another Nowak mare, of the Dabeh family, young
and unblemished, was also beautiful and blood-like, with
a head, perhaps, more beautiful than the last-named
mare, but hardly so grand, or with so much character.
Her shoulders were equally good ; her hocks were finer
and larger, more developed at the os calcis. She stood
fourteen hands three inches in height ; her action was
beautiful in the extreme ; she had a long sweeping stride,
and great reach ; her movements were most springy and
elastic, and full of force, power, and energy.

Account of Anazah Horses. 347
A dark bay colt of the celebrated Seklawi-Jedran
strain, and of that in the family of Ibn Nederi, to some
might appear small and unpretending in appearance,
but we thought him a colt of promise. He was two
and a half years old, and stood fourteen hands one and
a half inches, but looked of less height. He had a
beautiful head, showing much intelligence and much form ;
a perfect Jibbah, as described before ; good ears, a full
eye, a very fine nostril, and the nasal bones considerably
depressed ; a perfect neck and Mitbeh. He had long
sloping shoulders, well developed at the base of the
scapulae ; withers high and running well back. His arms
were long and muscular ; he had big knees and hocks,
good legs, long, strong, and elastic pasterns, and very
perfect feet. His middle piece was very good ; he had
a good back, and was good between your legs ; his back
was very short, and his loins broad and powerful.
When we first saw him the sacral vertebrae had a
drooping inclination towards the tail — hence his small
and unpretending appearance — but the haunch-bone
had a good direction. He had very fine quarters In
spite of the above-mentioned deficiency. He was very
good at the stifle, his thighs were very well let down,
and he had extraordinary length from the hip to the
hock, and stood over much ground. He was a wiry,
racing-like colt, good-tempered and very playful, but
very determined. He had great reach ; he had much
liberty in his fore hand, and when walking his hind feet
would overstep the marks of his fore feet to the extent
of three feet — sometimes more, I think. He was of the

348 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
highest courage, and very sagacious ; his action, walk
ing and galloping, very fine.
There were two grey mares, one belonging to the
cousin, and the other to the nephew of Suleyman ibn
Mirshid: the former was a very fine mare, with bone
and substance showing plenty of blood ; the latter mare
was lighter of bone, but blood-like and handsome. She
was an Abayeh Sherrackieh, and I think the other was
also an Abayeh : both were good mares.
Another Abayeh Sherrackieh, a chestnut mare, can
only be described by the word magnificent. She was
fourteen hands two inches in height ; of great length,
size, and substance ; of good bone, and wonderfully
handsome. Her head might be said to be of ex
aggerated beauty, and we both exclaimed, " Had such
a head and so fine a muzzle been depicted truthfully on
canvas, it would have been pronounced to be most
unnatural." Her ears were good, and of the mare type ;
the Jibbah developed to excess ; the eye fine and
prominent, but that part visible through the lids not
particularly large (the orbits of the eyes were large
and particularly prominent) ; the jaws deep, and the
muzzle excessively fine. She had a splendid neck, with
great development of the splenius muscle ; her chest
was deep and very capacious. She had a fine barrel ;
she had large and powerful shoulders, fine quarters,
a grand haunch, and the sacral bones so high that the
setting on of the tail appeared to be almost the highest
part of her body. Her withers were elevated ; her arms
were long, very large, and muscular ; knees large, square,

Account of Anazah Horses. 349
and deep ; good thighs and hocks ; short legs, clean, hard,
and of good bone. She was very slightly stag-
kneed, but the hock sinews were not inclined forward,
but perfectly upright ; her pasterns of a moderate length ;
her feet were large and strong, and rather higher than
is usual among desert horses. She stood over a great
deal of ground ; she had a free, grand, long stepping
walk. Her formation indicated very high speed, and
she had great substance and a powerful frame. She
had a very full tail, which she carried when moving high
to a degree. I have seen her, when she was galloping,
with her loins and quarters covered and hidden by her
widely spread and high carried tail. She was a mare
of the highest courage, easily excited and full of fire.
This mare's dam was, of course, an Abayeh Sherrackieh ;
her sire Keheilan Ajuz.
A dark bay filly, between two and three years of age,
we thought was one of the most racing-like animals we
had ever seen. She had a very bad cold, and therefore
was not seen under favourable circumstances. She was
of the Milliah strain, and stood about fourteen hands two
inches in height ; her head was, if possible, even of more
extraordinary beauty than that of the chestnut Abayeh.
The smallness of the muzzle and great size of the upper
part of the head were, If anything, more conspicuous.
She had very fine eyes, ears, and nostrils, and beautiful
lips. She was particularly deep in the chest ; her arms
were long, her legs short and deep, her pasterns elastic,
her feet good. She had great length ; she was wide
across the hips, but was not so grandly formed in the

350 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
croup and haunch as was the chestnut mare : but she
was a mare of the highest class and beauty.
We saw a family of the beautiful Tamri strain —
mother, daughter, and son, all bay. The dam, fifteen
years old, was a very perfect animal, truly made and
of good substance, and stood over much ground. She
was unblemished ; her legs and feet were very perfect ;
she had good bone, was very symmetrical ; her head
was good, but not of extreme beauty, but her neck was
very good. Her daughter, six years old, was rather
lighter in colour, and had not quite the bone nor sub
stance of her dam. She had a very beautiful head, was
of very high courage, and a fine mover. The son was
a bay colt of a beautiful colour, between three and
four years of age ; he was fourteen hands three inches.
He had a fine head, an eye of peculiar beauty, fine
nostrils, and sharp, finely cut, and very handsome
ears; a strong, light, muscular neck. He was deep
in the chest, had a good barrel, a back of great width
with arched ribs ; his loins, croup, and haunch were very
grand ; his well-formed thighs were well let down, his
hocks were finely formed, and his legs the hardest,
cleanest, and blackest I think I had ever seen. He stood
back at the knees in the manner suggested as being
accidental from birth rather than structural, and the legs
lower down became almost, if not quite, upright ; his
feet were very good, but not large, and rather higher at
the heels than usual among desert horses — a peculiarity
noticed by us in several cases of this kind, when, as is
not unusual among Arabians, and especially among

Account of Anazah Horses. 351
young ones, the knees were a little back. He had great
reach, and overstepped to a considerable extent. His
action - might have been a little deficient in his slower
paces, but he was a grand mover when at speed ; the
sweep of his hind legs was very fine. He was con
sidered to be a perfect animal, and was much thought
of by his tribe. He showed very high quality ; it would
be difficult to find or imagine a more thoroughly stylish,
high-bred horse, without any pretentious display or
show ; and he looked a high-class racer all over.
There was a nice clean-made, lengthy, useful, and
racing-like dark grey three-year-old filly of the Manakhi
Hedruj family, which belonged to Shaykh Jedaan ibn
Mahaid. There were four mares of Suleyman ibn Mirshid
picketed in front of his tent, the best of which he con
sidered to be the bluish-grey (Azzrak) mare, four or five
years old. She was also of the Manakhi Hedruj family,
and stood about fourteen hands three inches high ; she
was well formed all over, and looked like making a grand
mare. Her back, loins, and quarters were her leading
points perhaps ; she had a good and very nice head and
neck ; the head had great development above, but was
without the accompaniment of a very small muzzle. One
fore leg was slightly twisted. There were also two other
mares of the Manakhi Hedruj strain, both chestnut, very
bloodlike, with beautiful shoulders. Both were blemished,
and one had lost an eye ; but they were very beautiful.
We saw also a chestnut mare of the Hadban family and
of the strain called Enzehi, with a sweet hard level top
and a long swinging walk. Besides many others, there

35 2 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
were two Seklawi-Jedran fillies we noticed, both bays,
two years old — half sisters or full sisters by blood, I
believe ; they belonged to one mare, and we saw them
together. They were very beautiful. Several fillies a
year or a year and a half old, of the Nowak family, were
also great beauties. The sight of these young ones was
very interesting ; they looked like young racers of great
eauty, and were all particularly well developed in the
lower extremities, their joints, feet, and legs being all of
good size and well formed.
There was one colt, a yearling, perhaps fourteen to
sixteen months old, an extraordinary fine youngster,
showing promise of growing into a horse of note. He
was of fine size, of great power, and a slashing goer ; a
beautiful bay in colour. He had a good head and small
muzzle ; it was a good rather than a handsome head,
and had a commanding expression. When standing
still, he was considerably higher behind than before ; his
withers were not at that time developed, but he had
fine sloping shoulders, and no horse could have more
excessive liberty of fore hand than this colt. He had a
good back and fine quarters, knees and hocks of great
size and finely formed, great bone ; his arms and thighs
were very powerful. His hind legs were very straight, so
much so as to draw immediate attention to them when
he was standing, yet his hocks were not straight ; they
had great development both at the point of the hock
(os calcis) and at the astragalus. His action was wonder
fully good — I do not remember ever to have seen any
horse flex his hocks more ; he was all movement, and was

Account of Anazah Horses. 353
ever galloping and darting about. He had immense
reach behind and much liberty before ; his joints were
flexed and his limbs moved as if they had been well
oiled, and in appearance as quick as lightning. He was
a magnificent colt, but there were two drawbacks which
prevented him from being a perfect beauty : his ears
were neither pricked, nor did they point inwards ; they
were not, however, badly formed ears, and without
being lap-eared, the ears certainly inclined outwards,
but were continually in motion. This was, so far as I
remember, the only instance we saw among the Anazah
of a horse having this fault in the ears, but the example
is not without its value ; for here, among his own people,
there was no endeavour at concealment, nor had any
artificial means, such as stitching the ears together,
been resorted to ; and one eye appeared to be rather
smaller than the other, owing to a certain portion of
white being discernible round the iris, which did not
altogether fill up the space between the eyelids. This is
very unusual among Arabs, and I only remember to
have seen one other instance. I have been purposely
very particular in giving a detailed description of the
grand points and few faults of what seemed to us an
extraordinary fine colt of remarkable character.
Explanatory Remarks.
Allusion has been made by certain authors to "studs"
in Arabia. This may cause misapprehension, as it is in
ferred that there are different breeds of Arabians, and that
2 A

354 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
these breeds have their several and separate localities.
I never heard of any such existing, unless, indeed, the
system of collecting and breeding horses in Erack by
the people who supply the Indian market, can be con
sidered in the light of a breeding stud. The Imam of
Muscat, the family of Ibn Sawood at Riad, and the Sherif
at Mekka have private establishments of horses, but
these are more or less supplied or replenished by horses
from the desert tribes. In the desert, and in certain
portions of the Badaween race, lies the real home of the
Arabian horse, and this is especially so in the case of
particular tribes of the great Anazah family. In Arabia
itself, among the Badaween, the horse is indigenous. A
variety of different breeds are not to be found there ;
the Keheilan is the only horse. The Keheilan is to be
found in such tribes as have horses. In some tribes
there are very few, the Shaykhs and leading men being
the only ones possessed of horses — a mule or two each,
and perhaps a horse for the use of the camp or tribe.
It is in certain particular tribes of the Anazah race that
horses are chiefly reared and to be found ; these are the
property of private individuals, and a poor man, or a
poor family, may often have the best. It by no means
follows as a matter of course that the Shaykh of a tribe
has the best mares. If the expression " studs " could be
appropriately used with regard to the Arabian horse, it
would be especially in reference to the Anazah, and in a
secondary degree to such other tribes of Badaween as,
from local circumstances, supply neighbouring districts
and towns with Arab horses.

CHAPTER V.
OF THE HORSES OF THE SHAMMAR ARABS.
ALTHOUGH I have never visited the great Shammar
tribes, I have seen "Al-Jazirah," and had frequent oppor
tunities of seeing horses of the Shammar ; therefore
what I am about to say with regard to their horses
will not be from hearsay only. Our Investigations were
restricted as far as possible to such portions of the Arab
race as by general consent have the best horses in
Arabia, a thing which the history of the Arabs fully
explains and personal observation corroborates.
The horses of the Shammar are not much or generally
esteemed by other Badaween ; but, for all that, there
must be, and are undoubtedly, good horses to be found
among these large tribes, which have migrated from
their original or former settlement at Jabal Shammar,
the mere northern part of Central Arabia. Yet I would
never go to the Shammar for an Arab horse ; you never
hear Shammar horses spoken of in the desert or else
where with much respect or admiration — at least, where
people have had opportunities of knowing the horses of
the Anazah. Those tribes of Badaween occupying the

356 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
desert between Syria and the Euphrates, beyond which
river are the Shammar tribes, did not appear to us to
use Shammar horses, although to many they were close
at hand ; yet these tribes will always get Anazah horses
as stallions, if they can. Above all, Anazah horses are
prized by the Shammar, but no Anazah will have a
Shammar horse.
The Shammar "horses present to the eye a somewhat
different appearance to those of the Anazah ; they are
less bloodlike, and to some extent present a heavier
and more beefy appearance. The Shammar Arabs
would seem also to possess some strains of blood, the
names of which we did not hear of in the Anazah
tribes. I have no specific history or account of the origin of
the Shammar Arabs in Jabal Shammar. There is one
marked fact : they are, and have been always, apparently,
hereditary foes of the Anazah. That part of Arabia
called Jabal Shammar would be crossed by migrations
from Yaman, and perhaps often from Alhijaz, on their
way to Erack and the Euphrates. I consider it is quite
possible that many of the migratory families, proceeding
slowly, tarrying for generations in one place, or nearly
so, settled there and became one people with those who
had proceeded there, who, if not altogether the actual
descendants of the ancient Thamud, part of which
people I consider to have been settled in Jabal Shammar,
are to be considered as originating from the scattered
remains of that ancient people after their general de-

Of the Horses of the Shammar Arabs. 357
struction (for there were remains). I am also inclined
to think that among the Shammar horses may be found
some traces or remains of the universal race of Kuhl or
Keheilan, which, after the formation of " Al-Khamseh,"
was not so much esteemed, or ceased to be recognized,
and that their horses of "Al-Khamseh" maybe those of
what I may call the general family of " Al-Khamseh,"
but not descended from the horses allotted to Rabiah
al-Faras. But although inveterate or hereditary foes of
the Anazah, they possess Anazah blood to some extent
from animals captured in war.
Abdul-Kerim's grey or white mare, which he gave to
the friend of his boyhood, Shaykh Jedaan, of the Fadan,
was on one occasion brought for us to see. The Shammar
were about to attack the Fadan, and fearing Jedaan
might be captured, as I believe the Shammar were in
overwhelming numbers, the magnanimous Abdul-Kerim
sent his mare to Shaykh Jadaan, and begged him to
ride her, as she could outstrip every horse and mare
in the Shammar tribes. She was nearly or quite fifteen
hands in height, of good bone, and with a very level
top ; looked a thoroughly good animal, but did not
possess that indescribable appearance of excessive high
breeding which is to be seen among many or most of
the Anazah horses.
On another occasion we saw six young horses, which
had been selected from the Shammar by an Arab
gentleman of rank, who had held some official ap
pointment which brought him into connection with the
Shammar. Among them was a chestnut, three greys,

358 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
and two of not very decided colours ; they were reddish
greys. The chestnut was a Manakhi ; the greys were
Seklawi, Abayan, and Hadban. I do not remember the
strains of blood of the other two, but they were horses
of inferior appearance, and were in rough condition.
The grey Seklawi and Hadban were fair horses, the
latter fourteen hands three inches good; the Abayan
was a poor-looking horse ; but the chestnut Manakhi
was a great beauty. He had size, quality, good bone,
and was truly made ; his owner informed us he was an
Anazah horse, or of pure Anazah breeding.

CHAPTER VI.
OF THE ARAB HORSE IN ERACK.
ERACK, which was Babylonia, now commonly called
Turkish Arabia, but which among the Arabs still
retains the name given to the country in Genesis x., is
the district whence supplies of horses for the Indian
market are drawn, and the country in which a great
number of horses are both bred and collected for export.
The horses for this country are those which generally
are sent to Constantinople.
Arab horses are to be found there as in Syria, yet
for the same reasons that I would not seek for or select
Arab horses In Syria, I would not go to Erack for them,
nor yet among the Shammar Arabs, holding and moving
over the greatest part of that country lying between
the Euphrates and Tigris north of Erack.
In Erack, I think, are to be found the remains of
the Arab race outside of, or not incorporate in "Al-
Khamseh," upon which has been introduced the blood
of "Al-Khamseh," brought by continual later mi
grations of Arabs ; and there are horses of a mixed
race, from the blood of the Arabian introduced upon
the former Babylonian, Persian, and Median stock; all

360 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
passing under the general designation of Arab. The
same story again — three breeds of Arabians : Attechi,
Kidishi, and Kocklani ; which last, let it be always
remembered, even upon the authority of those authors
who have called Attechi and Kidishi Arabians, are
reared by the Badaween tribes in the remote deserts.
There are, too, the Montifitsh, a large tribe or people
many of whom are fishing men, but who have large
numbers of horses reported to be not of pure Arabian
blood. It is a country admirably adapted by situation
and by nature for the carrying on of an export trade
with India, but a very unsafe one in which to look for
Arab horses, if genuine Arabians are required. I do
not say there are not Arab horses there, but that there
are many others besides horses of pure Arab blood.
On one occasion we saw over thirty horses which
had been collected by the Pasha of Baghdad ; they were
most of them young horses from three to six or seven
years of age, and, with very few exceptions, they were
grey. I expect that neither he nor his people knew of
what blood they were, or were supposed to be of. The
son of another Pasha, a Turkish officer (both of whom
we knew), and aide-de-camp to the Pasha of Baghdad,
assured me in French, which he spoke well, that they
were of "La plus belle race," but what that might be
he did not know. An Arab who was in our company
looked upon the lot with the greatest contempt ; he did
not consider them to be Arabian ; they were rubbish in
his eyes.

Of the Arab Horse in Erack. 361
Of the Arab horses which go to India, what pro
portion of those which are Arabs come from the
Shammar I have no means of knowing. These tribes
would appear to me to offer the best opportunity, only
they would have to be visited. As It is, the horses in
that great district contained between the Euphrates and
Tigris comprise many varieties, and, taken as it were in
a draw-net, vary much in class and appearance, and,
passed into India, are called high or low caste — a truly
Indian phrase — according to the sign of breeding they
possess, or their figure. But what a sweeping, wide, and
unsatisfactory distinction, without a guarantee or actual
knowledge of the blood, and whence and from whom
they come ! How can such be pronounced to be, with
any certainty, genuine Arabians ? To say in England
that a horse was well bred — would that be sufficient to
warrant him being passed as thoroughbred ?
The districts of Baghdad and Bassorah have evi
dently been those most frequented by travellers, and
with certain parts of Syria, and the country to the
north through which passes the post-road to Mosul and
Baghdad, are those from which information respecting
the Arabian horse has been in a great measure drawn.
The difficulty of getting Arab horses at all from such
districts would be great, and, for the most part, they
would not be desert-bred horses at all. The dealers in
India confessed that they were dependent upon agents
at Bassorah and at Koweit for horses ; and it has been
admitted that the best they get are bred by a people
who live near the coast, that is, of the Persian Gulf, and

362 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
who supply them with horses ; and I consider genuine
Arab horses from the desert tribes of Arabia form but
a very small percentage of those which are passed into
India. I could enlarge upon the subject, but perhaps
sufficient has been said to show how unreliable must
be the knowledge of the blood of the horses from this
district. If any speculator were inclined to make the
venture of visiting the remote tribes of Anazah, the
uncertainty of getting horses and the prices which alone
would tempt them to sell would prevent a successful or
remunerative issue.
It has also been reported that a dealer in Madras,
who was questioned on the supply of Arab horses for
India, said, " The people we buy from are no wan
derers. Where they get their horses, in the interior
of the country, is nothing to us " (the Indian dealers),
" but we always know, in some place not far from the
coast, where to find our dealers. A great many — the
most, in fact — of the horses we buy from them they breed
themselves." Here we have reported a frank confession
of a dealer in India, who supplied high caste Arabs,
that he did not know, and apparently did not care,
whence the people near the sea-board who supplied him
obtained their horses !
Now, even to suppose for a moment that these
breeders near the coast had the requisite knowledge
about the blood among those tribes of Badaween who
have the best horses, and really obtained horses from
them, because they breed themselves and require

Of the Arab Horse in Erack. 363,
stallions for that purpose, is it probable that they
pass off the most likely colts or young horses to India,
instead of retaining them as stallions ? " The best we
buy for India," says the dealer, " are those the people
of the coast breed themselves."
But the Indian dealer to whom I have alluded is re
ported to have made a further statement, which is
fatal to the theory of pure blood being used by the
people from whom he bought near the coast. He says,
" The people of the wandering tribes have a great many
Persian, Turkoman, and " (strange to say, at such an
immense distance) " Barb horses and mares ; " and they
sell these spurious mares to those people near the coast
who supply the Indian dealer with horses ! The dealer
in India is, moreover, reported to have said (and this is
a very important and significant assertion, and shows
very conclusively the country or districts from which
the supply is drawn for India), "There are more
different breeds of horses in Arabia than there are in
Europe, and there are, moreover, a great number of
Persian, Turkoman, and Barb horses and mares." I do
not know what personal knowledge he may have had of
Europe, but he seems to have had none of Arabia itself.
The country he calls Arabia is, it is self-evident, Turkish
Arabia, with Turkomans on the north ; Kurds and Per
sians on the east (I cannot say how the Barbs got there) ;
that numerous people, the Montifitsh, with their horses,
whose blood is always considered very doubtful; and
containing, besides .the Arab horses possessed by such
tribes as the Shammar, the endless varieties which have

364 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
been produced among a mixed population from the
introduction of Arab blood upon the several neighbour
ing alien breeds, Turkoman, Kurd, Persian, and ancient
Median, and the endless varieties caused by intermixture
of these crossed breeds. I think my readers will judge
that the Indian dealer has made out a worse case against
the sources from whence he obtained his horses than I
have. I will reproduce the exact words which appeared in a
letter in Bell's Life, Saturday, September 28th, 1878. This
is what a certain Abdoolah of Madras is reported to have
said: "The people we buy from are no wanderers. Where
they get their horses, in the interior of the country, is
nothing to us ; but we always know, in some place not
far from the coast, where to find our dealers. A great
many — the most, In fact — of the horses we buy from
them they breed themselves. . . . You should know
that there are more different breeds in Arabia than there
are in Europe ; and there are, moreover, a great number
of Persian, Turkoman, and Barb horses and mares.
The people of the wandering tribes have a lot of this
sort. So if a man buys a mare from them he is very
likely to be cheated. As to laws or regulations, the
Bedouin, as you say " (referring to an expression
made use of by the writer of the letter in question, and
to whom Abdoolah supplied the information), " acknow
ledge none but their own. They sell plenty of mares
to the people near the coast, but the latter will not let
them go out of the country."
I think my readers will agree that I have not argued

Of the Arab Horse in Erack. 365
too strongly in advising such a country or such districts
to be avoided for obtaining pure Arabian blood. Yet
this is the country very generally selected from which
to draw a supply of Arab horses. We once travelled
with an Arab gentleman, whose acquaintance we had
made, a man of substance living near Baghdad. He had
been to Constantinople, and was returning home with a
large retinue. He gave us a courteous invitation to
visit him, giving us his name, address, and references.
He offered me his horse, saying, as he was going to
Erack, the country of horses, he could easily get supplied.
The horse was a grey, and a fairly passable one out of
the desert. We observed in Syria that horses which
had come from the Montifitsh, and generally from
beyond the Euphrates towards the Persian Gulf, were
often called Najd horses, and there was no attempt
made to assign to them any particular strain of Arab
blood. They were Najd horses, and nothing more was
known of their history. We once saw a truly beautiful
mare at Aleppo. She had been left there by a man
who had visited that city and gone away. Nothing was
known of her blood ; but as the man had either come
from Erack to Aleppo, or had left there for Erack, she
was called a Najd mare. She had the beauty and the
appearance of a desert Arabian, and was the only
animal we saw passing under the name of Najd, or
supposed, as in her case, to be from Erack, which showed
anything like the quality she possessed. She looked an
Arabian from the desert.
Before leaving this portion of the subject, it is con-

366 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
venient to allude to an assertion which has been made,
and so oft repeated that it has been accepted as an
established fact — that it is impossible to obtain an
Arabian mare ; that the Arabs will not part with a
mare ; that they will sell horses, but nothing will tempt
them to part with a mare. The least informed on the
subject of Arabians will tell you this as glibly and
with as much assurance as If he had been brought
up in the desert. One certainly announced that there
was a law forbidding the export of an Arabian mare!
Now, I can assure my readers that it is not by any
means impossible to obtain a genuine Arabian mare.
We visited the most exclusive of all Badaween tribes,
and never heard of such a law. If any law did exist, it
would be against selling, not exporting ; but we never
heard of such a thing in the desert. I assure my readers
that among the genuine Badaween of the Arabian
desert we found no prejudice against parting with or
selling a mare. Difficulty there is certainly to induce
such people as the Anazah to sell either horses or mares,
for they do not traffic in horses ; but if there be any
difference, you might get a good mare with less trouble
than a good horse. There is this difficulty sometimes,
however, with regard to the selling of a mare, which may
arise and cause delay. A mare may often belong
to two, three, or more persons, and all their interests
have to be consulted and arranged ; whereas a horse is
generally or often the sole property of one person.
But the tribe more often objects to a good horse being
sold.

Of the Arab Horse in Erack. 367
This almost universally believed opinion is another
piece of evidence how and where the knowledge of
Arab horses has been obtained, namely, in Erack, at
Bassorah, and Koweit, near and on the Persian Gulf,
where horses are bred for sale, and whence they are
exported to India. It can easily be understood that
those people who breed for sale would not part with
any mare at all suitable for the purpose of breeding for
their export trade, still less would they be likely to part
with a pure desert-bred Arab mare, if such they had.
That which the people near the coast do say about
horses has nothing to do with the manners and customs
of the Badaween tribes of Arabia, nor has reference to
the horse which is bred by such tribes.
I have the best of possible authority for refuting
the assertion that mares are not to be got, for mares
were not unfrequently offered to us, and among the
Anazah l(not the wandering people of Erack) we ob
tained both mares and horses, and the former without
more difficulty than the latter. Had we asked for a
* mare from a coast dealer, of course I should have ex
pected to have been told it was impossible.
Another merchant in India (and he is an Arab
by birth and family, but for a long time not a resi
dent) informed me that his instructions to his agent at
Bassorah were to get for him horses from the Badaween
of any part of the country, and also Najd horses. He
did not appear to know of, or to make, any distinction
as between tribes of the Badaween ; and I think the
Najd horses would be such as were bred, as has been

368 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
explained, in Erack, and not those from the province
of Najd in Central Arabia. This gentleman, an Arab
himself, whose family originally came from one of
the central provinces of Arabia, but had been settled for
a long period at Zaobair, a few miles from Bassorah,
near the head of the Persian Gulf, informed me that he
had been so long without any personal connection with
Arabia that he had no knowledge of the Badaween, and
that he did not know a single Shaykh of the Anazah ;
and, if I remember rightly, his father was not better
informed, or rather had not any personal acquaintance
with the Anazah Shaykhs. A year or two after this, he
visited the principal cities and towns in Syria, and
many of the bordering villages, and bought several
horses — about twenty-five ; he then proceeded to Zao
bair and Bassorah on his return journey, where, as he
wrote to me, he found the horses being got ready for
the Indian market. I understood he bought some
twenty-five there, and returned to India.
Although, perhaps, fewer horses were imported to
India at the end of the last and the beginning of the ¦
present century, I see many reasons why the Arab horses
which went formerly might have been, and certainly
were in some instances, of a better class. Merchants
from India were often settled in some of the towns in
Arabia for a long period, and if inclined to make a
venture, or if commissioned, might from time to time
have the opportunity of obtaining a real genuine desert-
bred Arabian of a good class ; and when few only are
sent, and these in the manner to which I have alluded,

Of the Arab Horse in Erack. 369
they are more likely to be of a better kind than those
selections after a large export trade has become es
tablished. Still within the last half-century some good
horses were imported into India, and doubtless among
those which are still sent there are not only some good
horses, but genuine Arabs ; for as one who had lately
been employed in India in the Government remount
service observed to me quite lately, " Horses which can
race, as they do, two miles, must be good horses." Still
to suggest or In any way incline to the supposition
that the best blood of the desert tribes is that which
goes to India, and that nothing else is imported, would
be misleading, and, I believe, quite contrary to facts.

2 B

CHAPTER VII.
THE HORSES OF CERTAIN BADAWEEN TRIBES, OTHER
THAN ANAZAH.
THE Badaween tribes in the desert west and south-west
of the Euphrates, as the Shammar are north and north
east, are far less migratory than the Anazah. Some are
for the most part nearly stationary, and cultivate the
soil to some extent, and have very few mares ; and even
in tribes where there are more, although I believe
them to be of " Al-Khamseh " and without any of the
remains of blood outside of " Al-Khamseh," these
mares do not present the same appearance of high
breeding and class as do Anazah horses. Still there are
good mares to be found in these tribes ; but they are less
even and more variable in appearance. You may find
some as good looking as they are good, but again,
others which are good but plain, or not handsome ; and
sometimes you may see ewe necks, whereas we never
saw an Anazah horse or mare with a neck that was even
weak. According to their own account, these tribes use
little or nothing but Anazah horses as sires, and I have
known instances where -mares have been sent a long

Horses of less approved tribes. 371
distance to an Anazah horse, whose owner had taken up
a temporary abode with one of these tribes. Their own
colts are passed on to other tribes, to the villages on the
borders of the desert, which are principally Arab, and
into the neighbouring countries, into Syria and Erack.
Some of these, no doubt, do find their way into Europe ;
and the desert-bred horses which go to India, I feel
sure, are in most instances drawn from these and similar
sources, and not from Anazah tribes. I think, moreover,
that although the blood possessed by these tribes is
essentially of " Al-Khamseh," they possess strains of
blood which I think are not among the Anazah, and
probably not acknowledged by them. The colours are
not so decided or distinct, nor are bays so decidedly
frequent as among the Anazah tribes.
The Badaween of these tribes admit the superiority
of the Anazah horse over their own — not only by the
fact that they use horses of that blood on all possible
occasions ; but they candidly told us, "If you wish to see
or want a superior horse, you must go to the Anazah."

CHAPTER VIII.
THE ARAB HORSE IN SYRIA.
As I have stated before, I think that in Syria, dispersed
from one end to the other among small tribes which have
become localized amid the remains of former large tribes,
is to be found the blood of the remains of that part of the
Kuhl race which has not come through "Al-Khamseh."
To this must be added the blood from the neighbouring
Badaween tribes and the intermediate Arab villages,
which is continually flowing in. Many of the horses
in Syria are called Anazah ; I. doubt whether they are
such. Whatever reliable desert-bred horses there are,
they come most probably from such tribes of Badaween
as are nearest at hand. Of course, I do not wish to infer
that an Anazah never does go Into Syria ; but I feel sure
the cases are exceptional and not the rule. Many
instances came under our notice of horses which were
called Anazah, and some which had passed for years as
such and were really believed by their owners to have
been genuine, were found, upon pushing investigation,
not to be Anazah. The people in Syria generally have
little or no accurate knowledge of Arabian blood or of

The Arab Horse in Syria. 373
the varieties of its strains, but they have heard the
Anazah extolled ; and as many, most, or perhaps all
of the desert horses which come from the desert into
Syria have Anazah blood in their veins, if not in all
cases the sons of Anazah sires, that is perhaps the true
reason why so many of the horses you see are called
Anazah. There are several difficulties and drawbacks in the
way of finding and seeing pure Arab blood, let alone
Anazah blood, in Syria. In the first place, there are
the "sons of horses" (which have been described),
which may be mistaken for Arabs ; next, the horses
perhaps even entirely of Arab blood, but unknown, and
not in " Al-Khamseh ; " and even a desert-bred horse
of "Al-Khamseh," if found, Is more likely not to be
Anazah. Of those horses bred by people in Syria of
supposed pure Arab blood, I myself should always be
very doubtful.
I have seen the horses of Pashas and other Turkish
officials, and those they have collected before leaving
their commands to take with them, and these did not
come from the Anazah. When at Damascus in 1878,
the city was so stricken with cholera I could not get to
see the horses of private Individuals, some of whom I
had been informed had good Arabs : one, at all events,
had a mare which was very highly spoken of. But
Shaykh Mohammed ed Duhee, of the Walud Ali, who
is much at Damascus, being occupied for his people in
political affairs with the Turkish Government, told me
he did not know of any Anazah horses, or of a single

374 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Anazah horse in Damascus besides his own, and the
Badaween who were with him, and to whom he referred,
said the same ; but I think one Badawee did mention
that he knew of one.
There are those who think the horses of Damascus
the finest in the world, and travellers think they have
seen the Arab horse in the greatest perfection In that
city. It will be well to hear the estimation in which
they are held by a Badawee. Mohammed ed Duhee
says, "Many people think the Damascus horses are
handsomer than the Arabian of the desert, but I would
not myself give five pounds for any one of them. I can
not answer for their mares ; and if the Damascenes had
the best blood of the desert, they would spoil it." We
quite understood what this- implied, and what Shaykh
Mohammed ed Duhee intended.

CHAPTER IX.
CERTAIN REMARKS ON HORSES DESCRIBED AS SYRIAN
AND BAGHDAD HORSES, NOTING SOME POINTS IN
WHICH BOTH KINDS DIFFER FROM THE ARABIAN
HORSE OF THE DESERT, AND SOME IN WHICH THEY
DIFFER FROM EACH OTHER.
THERE is some difference In external form to be ob
served between horses in Syria and those east of the
Euphrates, even among such as .are supposed to be of
genuine Arab blood, but bred respectively in these two
districts ; and in general character, and in several
minute respects, both differ from the Arabian horse, or
the Keheilan of the superior tribes of the interior desert.
Many horses bred in and to be found in both of the
before-mentioned countries, are not real Arabs at all,
but most are related to or are partly of Arabian blood ;
for it must be understood that the Arabian bears a
similar relation to all other horses in the East, as also
to the horses of Northern and North-Western Africa, as
does the thoroughbred horse in England to the various
half breeds, only in a far greater degree.
The term Syrian is taken here to express a horse

376 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
bred in Syria and on the west side of the desert, of
supposed pure Arab blood, as the term Baghdad is
selected to describe horses of the same pretensions on
the east of the Euphrates.
The ears of both kinds are not so perfect, nor
generally of the characteristic shape and attitude which
has been described as peculiar to the Keheilan in the
desert. The eye of the Syrian horse is often better
than that of the Baghdad horse ; it is full and brilliant,
and is often very conspicuous. You will hear one draw
attention to the eye of such or such a horse from the
fact of contrast ; that is, the head is far inferior to the
Anazah horse, therefore the eye, if good, is more con
spicuous. In the Syrian the nasal bones are longer
and straighter than in the desert horse, and are often
more prominent, whereas the frontal bones are generally
less developed. This is also the case with regard to -the
Baghdad horse. In neither kind are the jaws so fine, so
deep, nor set so wide apart as in the desert Arabian ;
and we thought the Syrian had cleaner jaws than the
Baghdad horse. The Syrian has a better nostril, but
inferior to that of the desert horse. In the Baghdad
horse frequently, and in the Syrian sometimes, the
nostrils are too small and round, instead of being long
and curved, and set too low down, and differing from
the inimitable nostril so characteristic of the Keheilan in
the desert. The neck of the Syrian is generally lighter
and more muscular than that of the Baghdad horse, but
the setting on of the head is not nearly so perfect, in
either Baghdad or Syrian, as in the horses of the Anazah.

Remarks on Syrian Baghdad Horses. 377
Neither are the shoulders generally so good, but I think
in this respect the Syrian has the advantage over the
Baghdad horse ; but the croup of the Baghdad horse is
often handsomer and the quarters better turned than
those of the Syrian. Both kinds have good legs and
feet, but I think the preference is in favour of the Syrian
— not larger, perhaps, but firmer and harder ; but the
knees are hardly so square, nor the pasterns so long,
oblique, and pliant, nor are the feet generally so open, as
those of the desert horse. The barrel of the Baghdad
horse is, as a rule, longer than that of the Syrian, which
latter is more like the desert horse in this respect. On
the whole, the Syrian looks a hardier, active, and more
muscular horse ; the Baghdad rather more bulky, and of
a more imposing appearance.
These remarks are intended as general indications
only. In many instances these distinctions are not so
decided or marked.
The horses bred generally by the Badaween tribes
have a finer structural and sensorial organization than is
to be found among the horses bred by townspeople and
in Syria and Baghdad ; and if some, as seen in the
desert, have a less imposing appearance than the horses
in the hands of wealthy townsmen, yet the desert-bred
Arabian has an air of breeding which the others lack ;
and, without any doubt, among certain of the Anazah
tribes you find the Keheilan of superior structural form,
accompanied almost invariably with great beauty.

CHAPTER X.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT WRITTEN PEDIGREES.
In the desert we neither saw any written pedigrees of
horses, nor heard of any ; that is to say, there is no
custom of keeping written pedigrees. It must be re
membered that there are few, very few indeed, In the
desert who can write ; but mo,st of the Shaykhs of
important tribes keep a secretaiy. Every horse, how
ever, has a pedigree ; the breeding of each one is well
known. In describing the breeding of a horse or mare,
he or she is said to be of a certain strain or family of
blood, which is always that of the mother. The strain
of blood of the sire Is then stated, and which is not
always of the same strain as the dam. These Arab
pedigrees are very simple and concise, but perfectly
explicit and accurate. The individual animal which is
the sire and dam of every living horse and mare In each
tribe of genuine Badaween (or perhaps I should confine
myself in these remarks to the Anazah) is known. Each
horse and mare has a specific and well-authenticated
pedigree. Nor in Syria did we ever see a written pedigree ;,

A Few Words about Written Pedigrees. 379
but I have heard of such, and I have heard men, a
kind of dealers, attempt to give an Arab pedigree,
which generally, if not invariably, only exposed their
ignorance on the subject. Of course, it is possible that
among families of settled Arabs, some members of
which may breed their own horses, certain individuals
may keep a written register, or have a document of some
particular horse, rather than a pedigree ; and that people
who breed for sale on the Persian Gulf in Erack may
often attempt a pedigree, or be ready, if required, to
supply such a document : which may account for the
strange and bombastic effusions we see sometimes given
by travellers or writers on the subject, for the informa
tion of their readers : but these, so far as I have seen,
do not give necessary information, and are certainly not
of the desert or of Badaween origin. I transcribe two
of these documents, or rather the reproduction of such,
which I happen to have by me ; and In opposition place
some pedigrees of Anazah horses, which I had written
down for me in the encampment of the Sebaah Anazah,
of horses and mares which I actually saw. It must
be understood that no written documents existed ; but I
asked that the breeding of certain horses might be com
mitted to writing for my own information, and as a
certain reference, instead of trusting to my memory
only. The originals are, of course, in Arabic, written
by my scribe, arjd I think in one instance by the scribe
of a Shaykh who was the owner of the particular
animal., These were all vouched for, and attested, by
the Shaykh ; and to the pedigree he affixed his seal,

380 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
after having attentively heard the document read out to
him. The translations are, as near as possible, word for
word, as in the originals.

Examples of Pedigrees such as are usually
supposed to be of arab horses.
" Pedigree of a Horse.
" The following pedigree of an Arabian horse, which
was purchased in Egypt during the war against the
French, was hung round the neck of the animal : —
'"In the name of God, the merciful and compas
sionate, and of Saed Mahomet, agent of the high God,
and of the companions of Mohammed, and of Jerusalem.
Praised be the Lord, the Omnipotent Creator.
" ' This is a high-bred horse, and its colt's tooth is
here in a bag about his neck, with his pedigree, and of
undoubted authority, such as no infidel can refuse to
believe. He is the son of Rabboug out of the dam
Labadah, and equal in power to his sire, of the tribe of
Zashalah ; he is finely moulded, and made for running
like an ostrich. In the honours of relationship he
reckons Zanlah, sire of Mahat, the sire of Kullock and
the unique Alket, sire of Manasseh, sire of Alsheh, father
of the race down to the famous horse, the sire of Laha-
lala ; and to him he ever gave abundance of green meat,
and corn, and water of life, as a reward from the tribe of
Zashalah ; and may a thousand branches shade his
carcase from the hyena of the tomb, from the howling
wolf of the desert, and let the tribe of Zashalah present

A Few Words about Written Pedigrees. 381
him with a festival within the enclosure of walls ; and
let thousands assemble at the rising of the sun in troops
hastily, when the tribe holds up under a canopy of
celestial signs within the walls of the saddle, with- the
name and family of the possessor. Then let them strike
the bands with a loud noise incessantly, and pray to
God for immunity for the tribe of Zoab, the inspired
tribe.'" The other document, which is stated to have been
given by Burckhardt, and translated by him from the
original in the handwriting of the Badaween, is as
follows : — " God.
" Enack.
" In the name of the most merciful God, the Lord of
all creatures, peace and progress be with our Lord
Mohammed and his family and his followers, until the
day of judgment ; and peace be with all those who read
this writing, and understand its meaning.
" The present deed relates to the grayish-brown colt
with four white feet and a white mark on the forehead,
of the true breed of Saklawye, called Obeyan, whose skin
is as bright and unsullied as milk, resembling those
horses of which the Prophet said, 'True riches are a
noble and pure breed of horses,' and of which God said,
' The war horses, those which rushed on the enemy with
full blowing nostrils, those which plunge into the battle
early in the morning ; ' and God spoke truth in His
incomparable book. This Saklawye gray colt was

382 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
bought by Khasrun the son of Embeyt, of the tribe of
Zebace, an Aeneze Arab. The sire of this colt is the
excellent bay horse called' Merdjan, of the breed of the
Kabeylan ; its dam is the famous Saklawye mare known
by the name of Djeroua. According to what we have
seen we attest here, upon our hopes of felicity, and upon
our girdles, O Sheiks of wisdom and possessors of
horses ! This gray colt above mentioned is more noble
even than his sire and dam. And this we attest, accord
ing to our best knowledge, by this valid and perfect
deed. Thanks be to God, the Lord of all creatures !
Written on the 16th of Saphar, in the year 1223 (a.d.
1880). Witnesses," etc.*
A few remarks are necessary upon the two pre
ceding copies of documents. In the first case, as to
the pedigree of the horse hung in a bag about his
neck, I never saw horse or mare in the desert with a
bag suspended from the neck. Every horse and mare
had a cord tied round the neck, to fall about halfway
between the head and the shoulders. This was a
common cord, about the thickness of a man's little
finger, and fastened in a knot of two turns, and was
convenient to take hold of if a horse required to be
caught. There is not the slightest mention of what
* The author thinks this translation must have been made by the
distinguished traveller, Mr. Lewis Burckhardt, while he was in Syria, and
before he acquired the knowledge of the Arabs and the country which he
subsequently was enabled to supply. Mr. Burckhardt studied Arabic at
the college at Aleppo during three years before he commenced his travels
in Arabia.

A Few Words about Written Pedigrees. 383
strain of blood the horse is of, nor any allusion to "Al-
Khamseh." With regard to the second pedigree, there is an
attempt to make it specific. The colt is said to be of
the true breed of Saklawye, called Obeyan. His dam
is specified by name, and described as a famous Saklawye
mare. There is something remarkable here, which shows
both a want of proper information, and yet is an in
dication in one little point of what I believe to be
correct but not generally known. The colt is said to
be of the Obeyan strain, and his dam a celebrated
Seklawi mare, but the strain of the dam should have
been given, for whatever that may be, of the same would
be the colt.
If Obeyan is not a mistake for Obeiri, which latter
is a well-known strain of the Seklawi family, I can
only suppose Obeyan should be Abayan, from Aba
(cloak) ; for there is no Obeyan. And although, as I
have stated before, I have a very strong impression that
the Abayan family or strain has come from the Seklawi,
it would be most unusual to couple it with the name of
Seklawi, even if my impression is correct; for the
Abayan is always spoken of by itself, and if it were
intended, it would show an amount of knowledge rarely
known, and a deviation from a general custom in
description. But it seems to me to savour either of
Erack or Syria ; for such a household word is Seklawi,
that the townsman or dealer would call every horse he
had for sale Seklawi, or put on that name as an addition

384 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to any horse he might have to sell. It is as common in
Syria for people to call horses Seklawi, as the expression
" as thoroughbred as Eclipse " used to be in this country.
Something, too, more specific than that his sire was
Keheilan, which is the generic name of the whole race
and not of a specific family, should have been shown ;
and I question if any Badawee would state such a thing
as that a descendant was more noble than his parents.
To my mind this second is just such a pedigree as a
venturesome vendor in Syria would produce or state.
We heard of several such given as descriptive of horses
which were shown to us, and we were told on one
occasion, when a vendor, who produced a similar pedi
gree with a horse, was told by the intended purchaser
that it was all nonsense and that the descriptive names
did not fit, the vendor implored that it might not be
destroyed, as it would do for some other horse just as
well. It is rather singular that a man brought a very
handsome bay Arab to us for sale ; he was an aged
horse, and the man called him Seklawi Abayan. He
said he had had his written pedigree, but had lost
it. This, I presume, he would receive from the man
from whom he got the horse, who was a Turk. When
told by those present that there was no such thing
as Seklawi Abayan, the owner said he must be of
some other strain of Seklawi, for he was Seklawi.
This horse was an Arab, and I eventually found out,
from a Badaween who had known the horse for years,
that he was an Abayan, and, I think, of the Fedaghi

A Few Words about Written Pedigrees. 385
strain. Now, the owner of this horse was entirely
ignorant of all matters connected with horses at all, let
alone Arabians, and I am inclined to think in this
case that he remembered the name of Abayan, but
knowing what a password Seklawi was, he had resolved
to add that name, and although he may really have
been perfectly correct in his description, he was so
ignorantly or unwittingly. The history of the horse to
which I allude was a varied one : obtained by a Turkish
official of rank from a Shaykh of one of the Badaween
tribes between Syria and the Euphrates, by very un
worthy means, on his death at some remote quarters his
effects were sold, and a junior Turkish officer bought the
horse for a small sum. This new owner parted with
the horse, at the instigation of the man who offered the
horse to me, on the understanding that for the horse he
should obtain for the officer a lucrative position in the
police. He kept the horse, but the officer did not get
the appointment. The horse was a trouble to his then
owner, who would have been almost glad to have given
him away.
The men who have horses for sale in Eastern
countries and towns are seldom or never genuine
Arabs — frequently they are Turkomans or of Turkoman
origin, and sometimes Jews ; and as to the pedigree
being in the handwriting of the Badawee who provided
the horse, it would be a difficult matter to find one who
could either read or write.
The fact that it is translated by Mr. Burckhardt is
sufficient to vouch for the correctness of the translation 2 c

386 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
of the document, but the style is at variance with any
thing I have met with among the genuine Badaween of
the desert.

Certified Pedigrees of certain Horses of the
Sabaah Anazah.
1. — "Breed — a Keheilan horse of the Keheilans of
Tamer. " Breed of his sire — Dhaman abu Aamr, of the Ko
masa tribe of the Sabaah.
" The name of his owner, Talkat.
" 16th Tammuz (July) of the Christian year, 1875.
" The testifier of this writing is
" Suleyman ibn Mirshid."

The Shaykh's 1 seal

2. — " Breed — Seklawi-Jedran ibn NedeVi.
" His colour bay (red).
" Breed of his sire — Dhaman abu Aamr, of the Ko
masa tribe of the Sabaah Anazah.
" His age two years and a half.
" 17th Tammuz (July) of the Christian year, 1875.
" The testifier of this writing is
" The Shaykh
" Suleyman ibn Mirshid."

The Shaykh's ( ) seal

A Few Words about Written Pedigrees. 387
3. — " The chestnut mare.
" Breed — Abayeh Sherakieh.
"Breed of sire— Keheilan Ajuz.
" A mare of the Shaykh Jedaan ibn Mahaid, a mare
of the Komasa tribe of the Sabaah*
" 1 6th Tammuz (July) of the Christian year, 1875.
" The testifier of this writing is
"Jedaan ibn Mahaid." Seal of the / \ Shaykh
Jedaan ibn V J Mahaid.
4. — " Breed — a Keheilet of Nowak.
" Her colour bay (red).
"Breed of her sire — Dabah Nowak.
" In foal by the hudud \ horse Seklawi al-Abd. His
tribe, i.e. the tribe of the horse, Ruallah Anazah.
" 17th Tammuz (July) of the Christian year, 1875.
" The testifier of this writing is
"The Shaykh
"Suleyman ibn Mirshid." Seal of / A Suleyman
ibn I J Mirshid.
* Shaykh Jedaan ibn Mahaid being of another tribe of Anazah — the
Fadan — it is specially mentioned that his mare was from the Sabaah.
This pedigree would be better rendered thus : "This chestnut mare of
Shaykh Jedaan ibn Mahaid was of the breed Abayan Sherak. Breed of
her sire — Keheilan Ajuz. The mare was of the Komasa tribe of the
Sabaah (Anazah). "
t The word "hudud" expresses a selected or an approved horse as a
stallion.

388 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
5. — "A bay mare.
" Breed — Keheilet Nowak.
" Breed of dam — Keheilet Nowak.
" Breed of sire — Keheilan Nowak.
" Her family from Keheilan Nowak ; her owner
Dabah Nowak, of the Komasa tribe, Sabaah Anazah.
" 16th Tammuz (July) of the Christian year, 1875.
" The testifier of this writing is
" Suleyman ibn Mirshid.
Suleyman / \ ibn
Mirshid's I J seal.
^  ' Witness,
" Jedaan ibn Mahaid."
His ( 1 seal.
Shaykh Jedaan ibn Mahaid, being a guest of the
Sabaah, and present when this pedigree was written
and sealed by the Shaykh Suleyman ibn Mirshid, was
asked to affix his seal as a witness.
I think it will be allowed that the five pedigrees
which I have given of horses which we actually saw in
the desert, in the presence of their owners and of many
members of the tribe, and certified by the Shaykh him
self, in their conciseness and simplicity, but in which all
that is necessary Is communicated, form a great contrast
to the inflated style of the former two.
It must be understood these pedigrees were neither
produced nor offered. They were written and certified
at my request.

CHAPTER XL
notes and remarks.
I BELIEVE most, if not all, genuine Arabs have a very
good Idea of a horse, and the Badaween of the interior
desert have a consummate knowledge and a very just
appreciation of a horse's merits, of his external form in
general, and of points and sensorial organs in detail,
certainly beyond what is known by the general run of
people in this country. The names given by the Arabs
to different points of the horse, unknown to the towns
men generally, show that they have a knowledge of com
parative anatomy. Thus Reshek, a word expressing the
metacarpals in man, is used to describe the same in
the horse, i.e. from the knee to the fetlock-]om.\s,. Again,
Akab, the human heel, is the word used to denote the
hock, the corresponding joint in the horse, and it is
¦astonishing how few, comparatively speaking, in this
country know that the heel in man corresponds with the
hock in the horse.
Upon inquiry, and on comparing notes, both on a
horse's form (i.e. his physical structure) and on the sub
ject of breeding, and indeed in all matters connected

390 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
with horses, we found that they know as much as the
best informed among ourselves. Indeed, we might
learn from them, or as they quietly say in reply to any
remark, " We know all that as well as you can tell us."
This is a fitting opportunity to allude to the sup
position that certain marks or small scars on the ears of
a horse indicate him to be of a good family and of high
blood. Travellers and writers have stated that the ears
of the high-bred Arabian foal are stitched together to
acquire an habitual pricked position, and Europeans look
about for these supposed signs of high breeding. The
sign of high breeding In the ear is a naturally beautiful
form of the ear, and the position and carriage of the ear
unaided by artifice ; and I neither saw any such marks
among the horses of the Badaween tribes, nor ever heard
of any artificial means being resorted to among the
Anazah and other Badaween to produce such an effect,
which must be natural and normal to be of any value.
Thus, these much-vaunted and much-desired marks are
rather detrimental than otherwise to the character of a
horse, showing rather that such would have no connec
tion with the desert of Arabia. Among the Anazah, if
the ears of a colt have not quite the typical form and
position, they are left as formed by nature. The Bada
ween never resort to any artifice to hide any defects.
They are totally regardless of the opinion of other
people. They are not dealers in horses : they do not,
as a rule, or very seldom, want to sell ; if they do, there
is the horse, fault or no faults. Such scars or marks on
the ears as are alluded to above are evidence that arti-

Notes and Remarks. 391
ficial means have been adopted to endeavour to give to
a horse, perhaps even of inferior breed, a fictitious resem
blance to that peculiar carriage of the ear which is a
general, marked, and subtle feature in the true Arabian
horse ; and I may say that these peculiar features of the
ear are more marked and more general among the
horses of the Anazah than horses of any other tribes we
saw. In some cases the marks may be altogether
shams, merely imitations of such scars as might be made
by stitching the ears together. Be this as it may, the
practice does not exist among the desert tribes of the
interior. Cutting off the mane and cutting the hair of the
tail, so that nothing is left on the dock, In the case of
colts and fillies, is a practice common enough among
townsmen in Syria and among the Turks ; but we
never saw any in the desert so treated, nor did we
ever hear that such custom existed.
Among the horses of the Anazah and the Badaween
generally, no marks are to be found -but such as are the
result of hard work, wounds, and the cicatrices from the
all-curative cauteiy. Prices of Arabians.
On the subject of the prices at which Arabian
horses may be purchased, I offer, a few remarks.
Although I have frequently heard that there was a
graduated scale of prices according to the age of the
animal, from two to six years of age, ranging from £40

392 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
to £60, £70, or £80, if such exist, it is in such districts
as Syria and Erack, and principally among people of
settled mode of life, more or less ; but even here we found
that whenever there was a horse of more than usual pre
tension, or, I may say, of any pretension, far more than
the supposed regulated price was asked, if the horse were
for sale. And the prices which have been said to have
been paid for horses bought in Syria for great per
sonages at £1000 may be quite correct, not improbably
for horses that did not come from the desert at all,
Great men in such places as Damascus, except under
peculiar circumstances, would not part with an Arab
horse which, if a genuine animal, they probably had
obtained with as much difficulty as any one else from
the Badaween ; and if a horse were not from the desert.
but bred in his own stables, there would be a doubt as to
the family of blood. In the hands of townsmen a good
Arab horse would always be valued at a high price. I
have seen it quoted by the writer of a work on horses
that the highest price paid for horses (stated to have
been Anazah) was £71 ijs. in the neighbourhood of
Damascus. I believe, setting aside two horses for
which that price had been given, the highest price
for others was £50 and the average £34. Now, this
is rather startling, and my attention was especially
directed to this statement. It is at utter variance with
my experience in the desert of true Arabian horses of
the Badaween tribes and of the Anazah. But such
prices as .£50 and £jo are those paid for ordinary
horses in Syria, or from local Arabs, which, I believe,

Notes and Remarks. 393
are not of " Al-Khamseh," but may be of the remains
of the Arab breed outside of " Al-Khamseh ; " and I
cannot help thinking that the horses for which such
prices were paid as alluded to in the quotation were of
this kind ; the context, or what is also quoted a little
before, almost proves that such was the case. Alluding
to the same subject, it is stated that "The Anazah
inflict a temporary disfigurement upon their young
horses, by cropping the hair of the tail quite short."
Now, this custom is quite common in Syria and among
townsmen, but is never practised by the Anazah of the
interior desert, nor, as far as we saw and heard, by any
tribes of Badaween of the desert. Among the Anazah
we saw horses of all ages, from early foalhood up to
mature age, and never saw one with a cropped or shaven
tail, but among townsmen in Syria we saw many so
treated. Again, describing these horses, it is stated,
"The common colour of all is a dark uniform nutmeg
grey." Among the Anazah, as I have stated, we
thought bay was the most usual colour.
It is very evident that the horses described in the
quotation are not of the same class as those described
and seen by us among the Anazah.
But there is still another quotation to be noticed,
which is very important. Just before the statement that
the highest prices paid for horses were £71 17s., and
just over £50, it is stated that " £100 was offered for
a horse." The owner, " a breechless savage, in a sort
of dirty night-shirt, rode away in wrath, and we never
saw him again."

394 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
Did it not occur to him who details this Information,,
and does it not strike those who read, that the horse of
the breechless man must have been of a different kind
to the others seen and bought ? Why was a price
considerably higher voluntarily offered for this horse In
question, if he had not presented a better and different
appearance to the animals that had been seen, and
which were or might be bought for £$0 apiece ?
The scorn shown by the " breechless one " at such
a price as one hundred pounds being offered for his
horse, added to the acknowledged and recorded fact
that the man and horse did not appear again, indicate
pretty clearly that a man and horse, both of a different
class and type from those which had been seen, and
which have been called Anazah, had come across their
path ; and this event should, I think, have opened the
eyes of those gentlemen, who thought they had seen and
were having the best of Anazah horses, to the mistake
they had evidently made. They had probably seen in
this man and horse a Badaween and a desert-bred
Arabian, by no means necessarily an Anazah, for the
first time.
Now, Mr. Lewis Burckhardt mentions that he saw
a mare which belonged to Sherif Yaha, and which came
from the stud of the celebrated Ghaleb, the Sherif of
Mekka, at the commencement of the present century,
and which mare was valued at twenty purses (about
£400). This was in the year 18 14, and this valuation
was between Arabs, not the sum demanded of a stranger
by an Arab. " She was," says Mr. Burckhardt, " as

Notes and Remarks. 395
beautiful a creature as I ever saw, and the only perfectly
fine horse that I met with in the Hedjaz." It must be
remembered that what Arab horses there are in the
Hejaz proper are obtained from those Badaween
which are bordering.
It is also stated that the Ibn Sawood, all-powerful
as they are in Najd, have given £400, £500, and £600
to Badaween for single horses.
But Mr. Sydney, the author of the book on horses,
who has compiled certain minutes as to Arab horses
from various sources, referring to this same subject of
price, quotes the following: — "Horses bought by the
Aghali seldom cost more than £\o. The Arabs will not
give their best blood and figures for that price. ... It is
difficult to get them to sell at all. I am perhaps the only
one who has ever succeeded. I help them In their
business with the Turkish Pashas, prevent apprehension,
etc. ; and even then, after a great deal of trouble on my
part, I buy a first-class horse or mare from them as a
great favour and at a long price." The name of the
author of these remarks is not mentioned, but I have no
doubt as to who he is — one whom I know well, and
who had frequently mentioned to me what has been
quoted. This gentleman I allude to, if" I be right,
had more information on the subject of Arabs, both
of men and horses, than any other person I have met
with, and had been at unusual pains to acquire
knowledge of their blood. He had also very con
siderable influence in the desert among certain tribes of
Badaween. I visited several of these with him, and he

396 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
accompanied us to the Sabaah Anazah ; and to quote
his own words when he saw us surrounded by Anazah,
examining their mares, " I have been nearly twenty
years on the borders of the desert, and have frequently
visited the Badaween, but I have never seen anything
like this."
To imagine that you can buy the best of Anazah
horses for £70 apiece is a snare and a delusion; to
offer such a price to an Anazah would be to expose
yourself to contempt and ridicule. When a Shaykh
of the Anazah has had to pay for a mare from another
Anazah tribe a sum equivalent to from £"250 to £300,
as we were informed Jedaan ibn Mahaid did a few years
ago — and another instance has come to our notice of
a Shaykh purchasing a mare in his own tribe at
something close upon the value of £i$o, and which was
considered a bargain — at what prices could a stranger
hope or expect to obtain similar mares? For the
purchase of a mare you may have the difficulty of
arranging with the several part owners. In buying
a horse, If a good one or promising, you may have to
overcome the general dissent of the whole tribe ; for in
the sale of a good horse to a stranger, of course the
whole tribe is interested — it is a loss to the tribe.
Experience has shown me that among the Anazah,
in those remote tribes of Badaween where are reared
the almost mythical Kalani of many writers, there is no
fixed price or scale for the sale of horses, They never
trade with their horses. When they can be induced to
part with a horse or mare, the price is just that, In kind

Notes and Remarks. 397
or money, or both, which may tempt any of them to
part with either horse or mare, and this must vary under
different circumstances ; and the high prices mentioned
by Mr. Burckhardt are not, as it appears to me, and
according to my experience, overstated, nor would
such prices, either in money, or in kind and money,
always secure a horse or mare you might wish to
obtain. Aghali is the general name given to dispersed Arabs
of various tribes, and who are principally collected in
or near Baghdad. They are carriers by calling, and
are employed by people, traders and speculators, to
carry out commissions. It is said, and I believe it to
be the case, that they are employed by dealers in Syria,
and by those in Erack, who supply the Indian market
with horses, but I never found satisfactory evidence that
they were in the habit of visiting , the great tribes of
Anazah. It is obvious that the prices they would have
to give would be far beyond what any dealer or ordi
nary speculator could possibly afford, and his selection
would also be limited ; for many animals, after two
or three years of age, are so much blemished by firing
that few would care to buy them. The Aghali may buy
up horses in the districts while in the usual way of
business, bringing, I think, at times horses from Erack
into Syria, and taking those of Syria with them on
their return to Erack ; and, as I have said before,
horses bought up In this manner — generally for ex
portation, I believe — belong principally to that class
(when of Arab blood) which I have spoken of and

398 Gleanings from the Desert of Arabia.
consider to be the remains of that portion of the
Arabian breed outside of, and not incorporate in
" Al-Khamseh," and which is often only partly of Arab
blood. Many would, and do, admire, at first sight, the
horses of townsmen of Syria and Erack more than the
desert-bred Arabian. A judge, I think, would not be
deceived or misled, but acquaintance would invariably
show the superiority of the desert-born.
I know of a case of a traveller from Erack, who when
he was shown a really very fine desert-bred horse, an
Anazah colt, was not at all impressed, and said he was
nothing in appearance in comparison with the horses of
the Montifitsh which he had seen, and not to be com
pared with one he had bought for .£40 or £^0 from the
Montifitsh ; but after having ridden in company, on his
grand horse, with the Anazah, he was completely crest
fallen, and said no more.
As an instance of horses having been supposed to be
Anazah, and also of the correctness and integrity of
Arabs on the subject of their horses, I mention the fol
lowing case : — A very fine mare, which had belonged to
Ahmed, the late Shaykh of the Mowali tribe, had become
the property of an Englishman at Aleppo. She was an
animal of much power, quality, high courage, and very
considerable beauty. From him she passed into the
hands of an Arab, Aga, a gentleman who was well
known in the desert, and a personal friend of many Bada
ween Shaykhs. The Englishman had always believed
this mare was from the Sabaah, and told her owner
that he could get a certificate to that effect from the

Notes and Remarks. 399
Shaykh of her tribe. The Arab said at once that it was
not so — that, in fact, she was not an Anazah mare,
although upon this depended in a great measure whether
he could sell her. The mare was a genuine Arab, how
ever, and of "Al-Khamseh," but was not an Anazah
mare, and, I concluded, had been bred in the Mowali
tribe, that of her celebrated owner.

^ <•> r>

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Warden's (Alex. J.) History of Angus or Forfarshire, its
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only at £2 17s 6d), £1 17s 6d. Dundee.
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De Witts (John, Grand Pensionary of Holland) Life ;
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Globe (The) Encyclopaedia of Useful Information, edited
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History of the War of Frederick I. against the Communes
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14 John Grant, Bookseller,
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Dyer (Thomas H, LL.D.) — Imitative Art, its Principles
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Great Diamonds of the World, their History and
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Hamilton's (Lady, the Mistress of Lord Nelson) Attitudes,
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Jewitt (Lleivellyn, F.S.A.) — Half-Hours among some
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King (Rev. C. IV.) — Natural History of Gems atid
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Paton's (Noel) Compositions from Shakespeare's Tempest,
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Martineau (Harriet) — The History of British Rule in
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Selkirk (J. Brown) — Ethics and Aesthetics of Modern
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Edinburgh International Forestry Exhibition, 1S84, edited by
John Rattray, M.A., and Hugh Robert Mil], illustrated with 10
plates and 21 woodcuts, 8vo, cloth (pub 16s), 5s. David Douglas.
Comprises : —
Brace's Formation and Management of Forest Tree Nurseries.
The same, by Thomas Berwick.
Stalker's Formation and Management of Plantations on different Sites,
Altitudes, and Exposures.
The same, by R. E. Hodson.
Milne's Afforesting of Waste Land in Aberdeenshire by Means of the Planting
Iron.
MacLean's Culture of Trees on the Margin of Streams and Lochs in Scotland,
with a View to the Preservation of the Banks and the Conservation of Fish.
Cannon's Economical Pine Planting, with Remarks on Pine Nurseries and on
Insects and Fungi destructive to Pines.
Alexander on the Various Methods of Producing and Harvesting Cinchona
Bark.
Robertson on the Vegetation of Western Australia.
Brace's Formation and Management of Eucalypus Plantations.
Carrick's Present and Prospective Sources of the Timber Supplies of Great
Britain.
Oldrieve on the best Method of Maintaining the Supply of Teak, with Remarks
on its Price, Size, and Quality; and on the Best Substitutes for Building
Purposes.
On the same, by J. C. Kemp.
Alexander's Notes on the Ravages of Tree and Timber Destroying Insects.
Webster's Manufacture and Uses of Charcoal.
Boulger's Bye-Products, Utilisation of Coppice and of Branches and other
Fragments of Forest Produce, with the View of Diminishing Waste.
Stonhill's Paper Pulp from Wood, Straw, and other Fibres in the Past and
Present.
Green's Production of Wood Pulp.
T. Anderson Reid's Preparation of Wood Pulp by the Soda Process.
Cross and Bevan's Report on Wood Pulp Processes.
Yoshida's Lacquer {Urushi), Description, Cultivation, and Treatment of the
Tree, the Chemistry of its Juice, and its Industrial Applications.
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JOHN GRANT, 25 & 34 George IT. Bridge, Edinburgh.

John Grant, Bookseller,

Johnston's (W. & A. K. ) Instructive Series :—
Scientific Industries Explained, showing ho.v some of the
important Articles of Commerce are made, by Alexander Watt,
F.R.S.S.A., First Series, containing Articles on Aniline Colours,
Pigments, Soap-making, Candle-making, Paper-making, Gun
powder, Glass, Alcohol, Beer, Acids, Alkalies, Phosphorus,
Bleaching Powder, Inks, Vinegar-making, Acetic Acid, Fireworks,
Coloured Fires, Gun-cotton, Distillation, &c. &c. , crown 8vo, cloth
(pub 2s 6d), is.
" Mr Watt discourses of aniline pigments and dyes ; of candles and paper ; of
gunpowder and glass ; of inks and vinegar ; of fireworks and gun-cotton ; . . .
excursions over the whole field of applied science ; . . one of the best is that
on ' gilding watch-movements. A systematic arrangement of the subjects has
been purposely avoided, in order that the work may be regarded as a means of
intellectual recreation." — Academy.
Scientific Industries Explained, Second Series, containing
Articles on Electric Light, Gases, Cheese, Preservation of Food,
Borax, Scientific Agriculture, Oils, Isinglass, Tanning, Nickel-
plating, Cements and Glues, Tartaric Acid, Stained Glass, Arti
ficial Manures, Vulcanised India-rubber, Ozone, Galvanic Batteries,
Magnesia, The Telephone, Electrotyping, &c. &c, with illustra
tions, crown 8vo, cloth (pub 2s 6d), is.
Mechanical Industries Explained, showing how many-
useful Arts are practised, with illustrations, by Alexander Watt,
containing articles on Carving Irish Bog-oak, Etching, Galvanised
Iron, Cutlery, Goldbeating, Bookbinding, Lithography, Jewellery,
Crayons, Balloons, Needles, Lapidary, Ironfounding, Pottery and
Porcelain, Typefounding, Bread-making, Bronze-casting, Tile-
making, Ormolu, Papier-mache, &c. &c, crown Svo, cloth (pub
2s 6d), is.
"It would form a useful present for any boy with mechanical tastes." —
Engineer.

Science in a Nut-Shell, in which rational Amusement is
blended with Instruction, with numerous illustrations, by Alex
ander Watt, crown 8vo, illustrated boards (pub is), 6d.
Contents : — Absorption of Carbonic Acid by Plants. — The Air-Pump. —
Amalgams. — To Produce Artificial Ices. — Attraction : Capillary Attraction. —
Carbon. — Carmine. — How to Make Charcoal. — To Prepare Chlorine. — Contrac
tion of Water — Crystallisation. — Distillation. — Effect of Carbonic Acid on Animal
Life. — Electricity. — Evaporation, — Expansion by Heat_, &c. — Heat. — Hydrogen
Gas. — Light. — To Prepare Oxygen. — Photographic Printing. — How to Make a
Fountain. — Refractive Power of Liquids. — Refrigeration. — Repulsion. — Solar
Spectrum. — Specific Gravity Explained. — Structure of Crystals — Sympathetic
Ink, &c. &c.

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2 >j 6- 34 George IV. Bridge, Edinburgh. 19
Stewart's (Dugald) Collected Works, best edition, edited
by Sir William Hamilton, with numerous Notes and Emendations,
11 handsome vols, Svo, cloth (pub £6 12s), the few remaining
sets for £2 I os. T. & T. Clark.
Elements of the Philosophy of the Human Mind, 3 vols,
8vo, cloth (pub £1 16s), 8s 6d.
Philosophy of the Active Powers, 2 vols, 8vo, cloth (pub
£1 4s), 6s 6d.
Principles of Political Economy, 2 vols, 8vo, cloth (pub
£1 4s), 5s-
'• As the namesof Thomas Reid, of Dugald Stewart, and of Sir William Hamil
ton will be associated hereafter in the history of Philosophy in Scotland, as
closely as those of Xenophanes, Parmenides, and Zeno in the School of Elea, it
is a singular fortune that Sir William Hamilton should be the collector and
editor of the works- of his predecessors. . . . The chair which he filled
for many years, not otherwise undistinguished, he rendered illustrious." —
Athcnaum. Dante — The Divina Commedia, translated into English
Verse by James Ford, A.M., medallion frontispiece, 430 pages,
crown 8vo, cloth, bevelled boards (pub 12s), 2s 6d. Smith,
Elder, & Co.
" Mr Ford has succeeded better than might have been expected ; his rhymes
are good, and his translation deserves praise for its accuracy and fidelity. We
cannot refrain from acknowledging the many good qualities of Mr Ford's trans
lation, and his labour of love will not have been in vain, if he is able to induce
those who enjoy true poetry to study once more the masterpiece of that literature
from whence the great founders of English poetry drew so much of their sweet
ness and power." — Athenisum.
Pollok's (Robert) The Course of Time, a Poem, beauti
fully printed edition, with portrait and numerous illustrations,
i2mo, 6d. Blackwood & Sons.
" ' The Course of Time ' is a very extraordinary poem, vast in its conception,
vast in its plan, vast in its materials, and vast, if very far from perfect, in its
achievement." — D. M. MoiR.
Monthly Interpreter, a New Expository Magazine, edited
by the Rev. Joseph S. Exell, M.A., joint-editor of the "Pulpit
Commentary," &c, complete from the commencement to its close,
4 vols, 8vo, cloth (pub £1 10s), 10s 6d. T. & T. Clark.
Vols. 1, 3, 4, separately, 2S each.
The aim of The Monthly Interpreter is to meet in some adequate way the
wants of the present-day student of the Bible, by furnishing him in a convenient
and accessible form with what is being said and done by the ablest British, Ameri
can, and foreign theologians, thinkers, and Biblical critics, in matters Biblical,
theological, scientific, philosophical, and social.
Parke fs (Dr Joseph, of the City Temple) Weaver Stephen ;
or, The Odds and Evens of English Religion, Svo, cloth (pub
7s 6d), 3s 6d. Sonnenschein.
" Dr Parker is no repeater of old remarks, nor is he a superfluous commentator
His track is his own, and the jewels which he lets fall in his progress are from
his own casks ; this will give a permanent value to his works, when the produc
tions of copyists will be forgotten."— C. H. Sfurgeon.
Skene (William F, LL.D., Historiographer-Royal for
Scotland) — The Gospel History for the Young, being Lessons on the
Life of Christ, adapted for use in Families and in Sunday Schools,
3 maps, 3 vols, crown 8vo, cloth (pub 15s), 6s. Douglas.
" In a spirit altogether unsectarian provides for the young a simple, interest
ing, and thoroughly charming history of our Lord."— Literary IVarld.
" The ' Gospel History for the Young ' is one of the most valuable books of
the kind."— The Churchman.

John Grant, Bookseller, Edinburgh.

By the Authoress of" The Land o' the Leal." £ s. D.
Nairne's (Baroness) Life and Songs, with a
Memoir, and Poems of Caroline Oliphant the Younger, edited
by Dr Charles Rogers, portrait and other ilhtstrations , crown
Svo, cloth (pub 5s) Griffin 026
" This publication is a good service to the memory of an excellent and gifted
lady, and to all lovers of Scottish Song." — Scotsman.
Ossian's Poems, translated by Macpherson,
24010, best red cloth, gilt (pub 2s 6d) o I 6
A dainty pocket edition.
Perthshire— Woods, Forests, and Estates of
Perthshire, with Sketches of the Principal Families of the
County, by Thomas Hunter, Editor of the Perthshire Consti
tutional and Journal, illustrated with 30 wood engravings,
crown 8vo (564 pp), cloth (pub 12s 6d) Perth 046
"Altogether a choice and most valuable addition to the County Histories of
Scotland." — Glasgow Daily Mail.
Duncan (John, Scotch Weaver and Botanist)
— Life of, with Sketches of his Friends and Notices of the
Times, by Wm. Jolly, F.R.S.E., H.M. Inspector of Schools,
etched portrait, crown 8vo, cloth (pub 9s) Kegan Paul 036'
"We must refer the reader to the book itself for the many quaint traits of
character, and the minute personal descriptions, which, taken together, seem to
give a life-like presentation of this humble philosopher. . . . The many inci
dental notices which the work contains of the weaver caste, the workman's
esprit de corps, and his wanderings about the country, either in the performance
of his work or, when that was slack, taking aliand at the harvest, form an interest
ing chapter of social history. The completeness of the work is considerably
enhanced by detailed descriptions of the district he lived in, and of his numerous
friends and acquaintance." — Athen&um.
Scots (Ancient)— An Examination of the An
cient History of Ireland and Iceland, in so far as it concerns
the Origin of the Scots ; Ireland not the Hibernia of the
Ancients ; Interpolations in Bede's Ecclesiastical History and
other Ancient Annals affecting the Early History of Scotland
and Ireland — the three Essays in one volume, crown 8vo, cloth
(pub 4s) Edinburgh, 1883 0 10
The first of the above treatises is mainly taken up with an investigation of the
early History of Ireland and Iceland, in order to ascertain which has the better
claim to be considered the original country of the Scots. In the second and
third an attempt is made to show that Iceland was the ancient Hibernia, and
the country from which the Scots cam'e to Scotland ; and further, contain a
review of the evidence furnished by the more genuine of the early British Annals
against the idea that Ireland was the ancient Scoti'i.
Traditional Ballad Airs, chiefly of the North-
Eastern Districts of Scotland, from Copies
gathered in the. Counties of Aberdeen, Banff, and Moray, by
Dean Christie, and William Christie, Monquhitter, with the
Words for Singing and the Music arranged for the Pianoforte
and Harmonium, illustrated with Notes, giving an Account of
both Words\and Music, their Origin, &c, 2 handsome vols,
4to, half citron morocco, gilt top, originally published at
£\ 4s by Edmonston & Douglas, reduced to I 10 O
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JOHN GEANT, 25 & 34 George IY. Bridge, Edinburgh.