in the castle, as we found at night to our cost.-Our Tawarah with their camels betook themselves for the night without the walls.

We were yet sitting and chatting with the governor, when it was discovered that the palm-leaf roof of one of the huts overagainst us had caught fire; and suddenly it burst out into a terrific blaze, rising along and above the wall of the castle. All was now confusion and clamour and hurrying to and fro; the governor forgot his pipe, his slippers, and his dignity, and rushed eagerly among the crowd, distributing his orders, to which no man listened; while to heighten the alarm, it was now announced that the powdermagazine of the fortress was directly under the flames. Fortunately there was nothing but stone-work in the vicinity, and water in plenty, was near; so that the fire was soon extinguished with little damage, after vast clamour and uproar among the Arabs. We were not able to satisfy ourselves, whether the story of the powder had any foundation or not.

We now withdrew to our room, and endeavoured to make use of the time for writing; but the idea of our wishing to be alone was incomprehensible to our new friends; and we might as well have set ourselves down in the middle of the court. My companion wishing to speak with the governor by himself, sought him out in his private room, and found him less reserved and more friendly than he had been in public. Indeed, it is well understood that all the officers mentioned above are only spies upon each other; and the governor had regulated his demeanour in public accordingly. Meantime, as our spokesman was absent, our own apartment was left more in quiet.

In the evening we were invited by the governor to coffee in his private room, up one flight of stairs near the S. W. bastion. The room was small and

entirely naked, with a floor of earth and a roof of the stalks of palm-leaves. In one corner was a wooden bench or platform about three feet high, on which were his carpet and cushions; in another part a little basin or hearth for making coffee; and these with one or two mats on the floor made up the furniture. We were admitted to his divân; others who came in, took their places on the mats or squatted down on their feet. This soirée was well meant, but proved to be rather tedious.

In coming by the way of 'Akabah, it had been our plan to proceed directly to Wady Mûsa, either along the 'Arabah, or through the eastern mountains, and thence to Hebron; and we had been habitually led to look upon this place as perhaps the most critical point in our whole journey. The country between it and Wady Mûsa, including the 'Arabah, is in possession of the 'Alawîn, a branch or clan of the great tribe Haweitât; who of course have the right of conducting all travellers passing through their territory. They are a lawless tribe, standing in no good repute among their neighbours; and their Sheikh Husein has of late years become especially notorious among travellers, as faithless and mean-spirited.' We therefore anticipated difficulty and much petty annoyance and imposition, both here and on our way to Hebron; though we knew that the fear of the Pasha would exempt us from all open attempts upon our person or property. We had never thought of taking any other route. We now learned, however, that Husein and his tribe were encamped at the distance of two days' journey from 'Akabah, near Ma'ân; and that it would require at least four days' time to get him here; besides the delay

1) This is the same person whom Schubert calls "Emir Salem of Gaza, the great Sheikh of

the Araba;" Reise. etc. II. p. 394. We heard nothing of any such name or attributes.

that would be incident to making a bargain and other preparations for the further journey. If therefore we sent for him, we must be content to wait here pent up in the fortress for five or six days, without employment or interest, and exposed to perpetual annoyance from Arab curiosity and official impertinence.

The idea of such a loss of time was insupportable; and we looked about for some way of escaping at a less expense from this castle, which we already began to dread in anticipation as a prison-house. Our Tawarah could not take us to Wady Mûsa without invading the rights of another tribe, and exposing themselves to reprisals; but both they and the governor said they could carry us across the western desert to Gaza or the vicinity, without danger of being interfered with by any one. On further inquiry, we found also that the same route would lead us to Gaza or Hebron, as we pleased; and we need not decide for either until we should approach the confines of Palestine. The journey, it was said, would occupy five or six days. As this was a route for the most part hitherto untrodden by any modern traveller, and we should thus avoid delay and all necessity of intercourse with the 'Alawîn, we determined (if possible) to make a new contract with our faithful Tawarah, and proceed in this direction; leaving a visit to Wady Mûsa to be afterwards connected with our contemplated excursion to the south end of the Dead Sea. On inquiring of the Tawarah, they expressed a willingness to go with us; but, taking their tone from the atmosphere of the castle, or from what they had heard of the 'Alawîn, they demanded for each camel two hundred Piastres for the journey; a larger sum than we had paid them for the whole distance from Cairo to this place. So the matter rested for the night.

Thursday, April 5th. Forenoon. This morning the

negotiation was resumed with an offer of one hundred and twenty Piastres on our part, and a demand from the Arabs of one hundred and seventy, which they afterwards abated to one hundred and fifty. As they were sitting with us to talk the matter over, the governor came in with his attendants and cushions; and seating himself, ordered coffee to be made and served round. Our own breakfast was now brought; and our own Arabs had the tact to go away. The governor and his attendants remained; but declined partaking of the meal to which we invited them, except so far as to drink a cup of tea. They afterwards withdrew; and our Arabs again took up the negotiation. After long and grave discussion, the result was, that the intermediate sum of one hundred and thirtyfive Piastres was agreed to by both parties. In the place of the dead camel, one of Tuweileb's was to carry a load; and we undertook to furnish provisions for the men upon the way. This was no great matter, for their wants are few and their palates not difficult. Bread and rice are luxuries which they seldom enjoy; and of these we had an ample supply. The commissary in the castle had also a few stores for sale, at enormous prices; but we bought little except a supply of lentiles or small beans, which are common in Egypt and Syria under the name of 'Adas; the same from which the pottage was made for which Esau sold his birthright. We found them very palatable, and could well conceive, that to a weary hunter, faint with hunger, they might be quite a dainty.'

While these negotiations were going on, I took a stroll alone without the walls along the shore. The castle is situated quite at the eastern part of Wady el-'Arabah, on the gravel slope which here rises from

1) Gen. xxv. 34. The name in Hebrew and Arabic is the same.

the water towards the eastern mountain. Directly back of the castle the mountain is high, and bears the name of Jebel el-Ashhab; but further S. the hills near the coast become much lower. The slope back of the castle is cut up with gullies from mountain-torrents; without however presenting any large and distinct water-course. Wady el-Ithm enters the 'Arabah further North on the same side; and I was disappointed in not finding anywhere in the latter valley, more traces of the waters which must rush into it during the rainy season. Indeed very little water would seem to flow along it into the Gulf; the greater part being probably absorbed by the sand.

On the shore I tried the experiment which both Rüppell and Laborde mention, of obtaining fresh water by digging holes in the sand when the tide is out. It was in part successful; though less so than I had been led to expect from their accounts. On digging a hole with the hands, it gradually filled with water, which at first was salt; but when this was removed, the hole again became slowly filled with fresh water. The Arabs had dug several larger holes just by, in which fresh water was standing. The language of Laborde seems to imply, that the chief supply of water for the fortress is obtained in this way; but this is not the case; as there is a large well within the walls, only fifteen or twenty feet deep, which furnishes an abundance of good water. There are also other like wells in the vicinity of the fortress. Indeed the fresh water on the shore is apparently on about the same level with the bottom of these wells; and the supply of both probably comes from water, that filters its way down from the eastern mountain under the gravel which here forms a slope quite to the sea. This appearance of water is confined to the shore near the castle; for I repeated the same experiment afterwards in several places