Page 177 - Travels in Arabis (Vol I)

138 TRAVELS IN OMAN. [CH.

although the rooms in which it is constantly
burnt are low and confined, and the doors

and windows all closed at night.

The subsequent three days were passed by
us in traversing the country in various direc­

tions, and I shall now give the result of our
observations on the figure and general pro­

ductions of the range. The Jebel Akhdar
occupy from east to west, which is their

greatest length, a distance of thirty miles.
At right angles to this they are intersected

by narrow deep valleys, along which, during
the rainy season, on either side, the torrents

descend, and lose themselves, either in the
sandy soil which crosses the plains, or pour

their waters into the ocean. The maximum
breadth of the chain is fourteen miles, and

the northern and southern declivities are very
rapid. Taken generally, it will be seen by

my narrative of our route, that the range by
no means deserves the appellation it has re­

ceived, “ Green,” for a great proportion of its
surface is bare limestone rock, which pre­

sents in some places naked tabular masses,
and in others, the shallow, earthy deposit

lodged in the hollows is as poor as the worst