Page 217 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

198 COAST OF ARABIA. [CH.

seated around smoking with great tranquil­

lity, but none advanced to support or assist
him. On my reproaching them with cruelty,
they replied, “ that his master had died the
day before, and that, as his destiny was now
about to be fulfilled, no human aid could
avail him.” In this state, therefore, they had
permitted him to crawl from hut to hut, per­
fectly naked, without food or attendance,
under an impression that death would soon
release him. It may be conceived the sur­

prise with which they viewed the means
the surgeon resorted to in order to lessen
i
his sufferings or aid his recovery, and lis­
\
tened to the injunctions that were given rela­
tive to his future treatment. The surgeon
continued to visit him during our stay, and
on our departure he was left in a convales­
cent state, with provisions and everything
necessary for his recovery; and the Arabs,
who were still at a loss for a motive to account
for the interest we had taken in him, were
strongly enjoined to take care of him. In a
subsequent visit we learned that he had gra­

dually recovered, to the great astonishment
l
of his friends. To this incident, which