Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1872-05-22

PERILs OF TRAVEL IN TUE ORIENr.-I
A letter from Jerusalem, March 30. to
the Levant Herald ay;-The adventures
and capture Of party Of scientific trav-
elers by the notorious rufhan, Mujelli
Shaykh Of Kerak, in Moab, may perhaps
interest some Of your readers as much as
they did the inhabitants of this place. Two
months ago Canon Tristram aud DR.. Gu
isburg, accompanied by four other gentle
men and Rev. Mr.. Klein, resident mis-
sionary, stared for Moab. The two first
named gentlemen had received grant
from the British association to assist them
in exploring more thoroughly than has yet
been done the land of Moab. They frst
went to Hebron, (El KhaliD, where they
engaged certain of the Jehalin Arabs to
escrt them to Kerak. Arrived at the
Ghorel Saf, they found the Gawainsh
Arabs and the Benz Attyyeh prepared to
attack them. Diplomacy however, aid.
ed by "Backshish" Pasha, gained the
day. The Mujelli Shaykh of the fellahin
of Kerak sent down his son to rescue the
travellers and escort them to Draa. Here
they were bled to the extent of some thir-
" napolcons. Arrived at Kerak, they
complained to the mujelli, who affected
great indignation at his sons enforce
ment of backshish, and said he had no
wish TO touch farthing. He, however,
confined the travellers to their tents for
three or four days, and then demanded
9600 as ransom. They managed in this
interval to send off aCiristian Of Kerak
to Jerusalem with a letter to Mr.. N. T.
Moore, her najesty's consul. This gen.
teman acted with the greatest decision,
telegraphing to Dama' Gus and Nabbas for
soldiers and sending off Mr.. &. Snlame,
his chancelier, with the necessary gold
to proceed to El.Salt, aud go down tc
Kerak with the troops. Meanwhile ia.
tam, son Of Fcndiel.Faiz, shaykh of the
Beni-Sakhkhr had gone to Kerak, having
made contract at the English consulate
after DR.. Tristram's departure, to escort
the party anywhere within biz
territory or that of allied tribes. The
Bedouin proved most valuable ally tc
the Englishmeu, who finally got off witl
a further payment of some twenty-five Il
thirty napoleons. On hearing that the par
ty had escaped safe and sound in person
the troops who were marching on Keras
received orders TO proceed no further
and an inquiry was set on foot. Had i
not been for tfe energetic action of he
| Maiesty's consul here, these gentlemen
would not have escaped SO easily. Sha
ykh-el- -Mujelli is felah, whose father i
seid to have been so poor as to posses
rothing in the way of clothing but sin
gle "labba." The present rufian rolls il
wealth, chiefly extortcd from travellers
such as the late duke de Lnyncs, NJ. d,
Saulcy and others, and from the Greel
converts at Kerak. He has thus beel
able to satisfy the "itching palm" Of com
missioners. He has forced the Christians o
Kerak, who detest and fear him, to sigl
a paper exonerating him from all blame
and he himself has written TO say that h
treated the travellers with oil courtesy ant
took nothing from them, but requires sat
isfaction for defamation of character
The Turkish authorities have chosen Il
take this version Of the case as true, pre-
fering to believe The statement Of fellal
of VIGOROUSLY rufianly habits to that 0
seven well known English gentlemen
three Of whom are clcrgymen-and Of |
Bedouin shaykh Of good reputation. AL
this. notwithstanding the energetic pro
tests of her Britannia majesty sconsul. |
the matter be allowed to rest thus, it viii
be useless for the American exploring par
ty to attempt work in Moab, unless the.