Page 42 - A Hand Book of Arabia Vol 2_Neat

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NORTHERN ROUTES (Nos. 1-7) 23 *

necessary, or at least prudent, to carry water for man and beast
(pr more than a day’s journey. But only one of them is rendered
dangerously difficult by natural causes, namely No. 1 (Jauf to
Hail via Jubbah), on which continuous deep nefudh sand, with no
possibility of water, must be traversed from four to six days. Here
a mistake of direction or a breakdown might easily involve a party
in destruction. Curiously enough, however, this road is the one I
which has been followed most often by European travellers, the
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reason being that, up to about 1890, provision of water on the much
easier route from Jauf, No. 2 (via Hayyanlyah), had not been
secured. It was only after the Emir Mohammed of Ha’il had cleaned
out, and fortified with a block-house, the Hayyanlyah wells, and at
the same time curbed the tendency of the Anazah and Dhaflr tribes
to raid this part of the northern desert, that the eastern route,
which nowhere encounters any very broad or deep sand-belt, came
into favour.

The quickest and easiest route from Syria to Central Arabia is,
of course, by the Hejaz Railway to Qal‘at el-Mu‘adhdham (Route
No. 20), or some point south of it. The Mu‘adhdham route is that
taken habitually by the couriers of the Emir of Ha’il, who cover the
distance from the capital to the railway in three stages on their fast
dromedaries. From Meda’in Salih, El-‘Ala or Hadlyah (via Kheibar)
Qasim can be reached almost as quickly.

If this railway be not utilized, the points of departure are either 1
Jauf el-‘Amr or a settlement in the lower Euphrates valley, prefer­
ably Nejef, Samawah, or Suq esh-Shuyukh, the last being least iA
favour owing to danger from the uncontrolled Dhaflr and Muteir J
tribesmen. From no points lower down the valley or along the
Shatt el-‘Arab is there any but a very difficult direct track to Ha’il.
Apart from the human dangers just mentioned, the south-eastern
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corner of the Northern Desert presents special difficulties of relief
and intricate and irregular dune-formations.
From these points the tracks converge on one or other of two urban
centres in the Centre, Ha’il or Boreidah. The latter lies to the south­ \
east of the former, but caravans do not necessarily pass through
Ha’il to reach it. °
All these routes are possible for the passage of regular armed
forces of moderate size, if special arrangements’ have btTen made for
their transport and supply on the way, except probably the Jauf-
Jubbah-Hail route, which lies for four to six days through deep
waterless nnfud. b’or example, over the Darb es-Seltnan and Darb