Syria and the Holy Land : their scenery and their people : incidents of travel, &cfrom the best and most recent authorities . g able to robus openly, because they had made themselvesresponsible for us with their lives, they hadrecourse to all sorts of stratagems to cheatus of what they could. Yet, these verymen, though capable of such rascality,would deem it an offence to their dignity,were money offered them in return for foodobtained under their tents. Such is the charac-ter of the Arabs of the Desert, a medley ofcunning, thievish rapacity and chivalricgenerosity. The roving Arab will strip
Syria and the Holy Land : their scenery and their people : incidents of travel, &cfrom the best and most recent authorities . g able to robus openly, because they had made themselvesresponsible for us with their lives, they hadrecourse to all sorts of stratagems to cheatus of what they could. Yet, these verymen, though capable of such rascality,would deem it an offence to their dignity,were money offered them in return for foodobtained under their tents. Such is the charac-ter of the Arabs of the Desert, a medley ofcunning, thievish rapacity and chivalricgenerosity. The roving Arab will strip thetraveller on the highway without mercy, andleave him to perish of hunger and thirst;and he will welcome him beneath his tent inthe name of God the Compassionate, theMerciful ! We had got thus far in our reading when thedoor opened, and in walked Mr. Farrens showyand handsome dragoman, accompanied by aBedouin sheikh, with whom our good friend had made preliminary arrange-ments on our behalf. The business was soon settled, the sum we were to pay,and the time and manner of our journey fixed, and the whole proceeding was. * A Bedouin. PALMYRA. 225 closed by a very animated harangue by the dragoman, wherein he impressedon the sheikhs mind the care he was totake of us ; and told hiin how, that,quick as lightning, terri-ble as the thunderbolt,with several other orientalsimiles and expressions,would be the punishmenton his devoted head andthat of his followers if anyharm came to us, everysentence being enforcedby a loud clap of thehands at the end of sheikh all the whilesat composedly on theground, leaning with hisback against the wall,looking very patient andsubmissive, and only ejacu-lating every now and thentaieeb! taieeb! very wTell,very well. Oct. 24th. At threeoclock in the afternoonwe found the caravanassembled outside thegate and ready for depar-ture ; and in no long timeafterwards we were all mounted. This mounting, however, was no easy business, for manyof us had ne
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