Page 471 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

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SOUTHERN ARABIA. [CH.

posed. The two towns of Ainad and Terim
are severally said to contain ten thousand
inhabitants; and some of the others nearly
an equal number. Few supplies intended for

Hydramaut are received at Makullah; and
having hitherto regarded this country as a
desert, we looked with surprise for the means
by which its population could be supported:
all this was, however, the result of miscon­
ception. Whole districts are described to
me as rich in corn-fields and gardens; well
watered, clothed with herbage, and adorned
and shadowed with lofty and stately trees.

A great number of Arabs, natives of this and
the neighbouring province of Jaffa, rude from
their native wilds, embark for India to push
their fortunes in the service of the native
princes, who highly esteem them for their
bravery and devotion. It might be expected
that many, tempted by the prospect of pay
and other advantages, would also enter among
the British troops; but either from disliking
the severity of our discipline, or from some
other cause, none have been found to do so.

The whole of this district is subjected to
the sway of the Grand Sheikh, Babak Ibn