Page 458 - Neglected Arabia Vol 2

MliCUlCrni) ARABIA 11

energy of the Arabs enabled them to deprive Turkey of the suzerainty
she had gained over the outer provinces of Arabia, including Mecca and
al-lMadiua, two of the sacred cities of Islam. Turkey then determined
lo overthrow the Wahhabi Empire of Central Arabia. Like the Romans
Turkey used a general and army from Egypt and in 1818 destroyed the
Arabian power, and regained control of the border provinces.
Then the British increasingly interested themselves in the lands
between England and India. They established lighthouses and gun-boat
patrols in the seas surrounding Arabia. They undertook to suppress
piracy and slavery by sea. They made treaties with many tribal chiefs
along the coasts, engaging to protect them from foreign aggression in
exchange for control of their foreign relations. Because the protection
could be made effective by the use of war ships and because internal
alTairs remained in their own hands, the rulers of most of the small prov­
I inces along the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf accepted such treaty
arrangements. The greatest hook about Aral) life before the war is
Doughty’s “Arabia Deserts”, Musil’s “Explorations in Arabia and Meso­
potamia” are invaluable volumes and Harrison’s “The Arab at 1 lome” is
very good reading.
At the time of the World War the Second Wahhabi Empire had be­
come established in Central Arabia with the same principles and purposes
that made the first empire so successful. Philby’s book with “Arabia” as
its title tells very well the story of both Wahhabi kingdoms. Great
Britain gave a subsidy to Ibn Saoud, the Sultan of Central Arabia, to
ensure his neutrality, and sent Col. Lawrence to Western Arabia to incite
a revolt against Turkey. Col. Lawrence’s spectacular exploits, recorded
by himself, Mr. Lowell Thomas and others, have, become a part of the
romance of Arabia. A notable and noble part of that romance is
Lawrence’s rejection of |x*rsonal honors because his country did not honor
fully the promises he made lo the Arabs on behalf of his government.
When the War was over Great Britain helped two of the sons of King
Hussein of the Hijaz to become rulers in 'Transjordan and Mesopotamia,
hut King Hussein was unwilling to accept the treaty Great Britain wanted
to make with him.
.Meanwhile, the Wahhabi Kingdom in Central Arabia had been grow­
ing. Ibn Saoud had been changing the manner of life of the people.
Arabia is largely desert. Its rainfall is only live or six inches a year, not
enough lor agriculture. In the central mountainous country the rain of
the whole region collects in wells in the valleys, and is sufficient to supply
Miiall villages with their necessary vegetable gardens and date groves.
In the rest of Arabia the scanty rain, which falls only in the winter,
is enough to grow grass in the depressions of the land that receive- the
drainage from great areas. So the Bedouin have always raised live
Mock and lived in tents so that they could readily move from one. de­
pression where there was pasturage to another as the grass was con­
sumed. Jii many of these depressions and valleys they dug wells to pre-
MTve the water for themselves and their flocks. The wandering Bedouin
•‘hvay.s know where they are going. They make the rounds ot their pas-
h,r;iK<’s regularly. 'Tribal lights, such as ll»<- mu- n-pmlrd in thr pirss

I