Page 56 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

ii.] TOR TO SUliZ. 37

tioned, in a violent and agitated manner, for us
to dismount and conceal ourselves : he at the
same time pointed to a valley on the right,

where we saw a party of Bedowins with their
camels: at this period I understood but little
of Arabic, and apprehending no grounds of
alarm, remained laughing at the violence of
his gestures, which so enraged him, that draw­
ing his hand across his throat, and pointing
again to the Bedowins, he remounted and
rode off at full speed, leaving us to follow or

not, as we pleased. It was the roughest riding
I ever experienced; for the camel’s pace,
when at speed, is between a trot and a gallop;
but so excessively violent, that the rider is
jerked at every step several inches from the
saddle. We proceeded at this rapid pace for
some time, Hamed constantly vowing he
would not stop until we reached Suez; but
we were not Bedowin Arabs, and had been
on our camels, with only one short halt, since

day-break: I therefore determined, in spite
of all Hamed’s remonstrances, to halt and
dine. We therefore seated ourselves under a
lofty hillock of sand, clothed with shrubs,
several of which had been seen during our