Journey through Arabia Petraea, to Mount Sinai, and the excavated city of Petra, the edom of the prophesis . llahs, the inhabitants ofWady Mousa, they did not conceal their opinion,and it wasobvious that, under an air of affectedcontempt, they really felt a strong apprehensionof the evil disposition of that people. The pro-digious number of their guns was again and againadverted to in the replies which we received. It was late when we retired. We proposedthat the chiefs of the Alaouins should sleep in our BED OF THE ALAOUINS. 133 apartments, but they all declined our offer, andwent down to the


Journey through Arabia Petraea, to Mount Sinai, and the excavated city of Petra, the edom of the prophesis . llahs, the inhabitants ofWady Mousa, they did not conceal their opinion,and it wasobvious that, under an air of affectedcontempt, they really felt a strong apprehensionof the evil disposition of that people. The pro-digious number of their guns was again and againadverted to in the replies which we received. It was late when we retired. We proposedthat the chiefs of the Alaouins should sleep in our BED OF THE ALAOUINS. 133 apartments, but they all declined our offer, andwent down to the court, where they lay down be-side their camels. This simplicity of manners,preserved without change through so many ages,could not but excite our admiration, when wereflected that these chiefs, who exercise dominionover a vast tract of territory, who by merely pro-nouncing an order might cause the caravans ofMecca to be stopped or plundered, neverthelesstravelled like the most humble camel-drivers, sleep-ing on the bare ground of the court, in the midstof the chambers which were offered for their k 3 134 CHAPTER IX. PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE. — WADY ARABA. — AN ARABIAN TALE. TENDERNESS TO ANIMALS. SCORPIONS OF THE WILDERNESS. PEDESTRIAN HUNT. — WADY GA- RANDEL. NIGHT SCENE. APPROACH TO PETRA. VISIT OF MR. BANKS. ARABIAN POLICY. ENCAMPMENT OF PEASANTS. FIRST VIEW OF PETRA PROPHECY OF JERE-MIAH. MONUMENTS. The loss of time which was caused by the tardyjourney of our messengers involved us in increasedexpenses, which it was impossible for us to dis-charge with the money we then possessed. Itherefore sent Mohammed, one of our guides, toCairo, to whom I gave an order on M. Pacho, mybanker, the amount of which he was to receivepartly in Spanish dollars, partly in Venetian se-quins. We calculated that Mohammed wouldrequire eight days to go, and as many to return;and that allowing for other delays which he mightmeet with, he would probably be back at the for-tress by the


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