The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1880-06-02
IN THE DESERT OF SAHARA.
Not a Desolate Plain, But Cultivated
Country, Fruitful as tho Garden OF
Eden-Arnb Manners and Arab Faith.

dated Oasis OF Iahlet, IN tne oanara !:
All of ones. preconceived ideas vanish
before the facts of experience. The
Sahara is not desolate plain of moving
sand, with no signs of vegetation. but a
cultivated country, fruitful as the gar
den of Eden. Like our "great Ameri-
can DESERT" it has been greatly belied.
| Ell Sahr, as the Arabs pronounce it. is
indeed d vast archipelago of oases, offer.
ing an animated group of towns and
villages. A large belt of fruit trees sur
rounds each of these villages, and the
palm, the fig, the date, apricots, pome-
g1anates and vines abound in the utmost
profusion. Ascending the Atlas noun
tains by q gradual slope to the region Of
high table lands, we come to the land of
the Mozabites, or Ben Mozab, and then
comes a gradual descent for 300 miles
to the vast stretch of treeless territory
known as the great desert. The rivers
have an inclination of one foot in every
400. Many of the streams are dry, ex.
cept after rairs, when they deluge the
country. Gun-shots are fired as soon as
the torrents appear; all objects are re-
moved, and soon, with terrible noise,
the flood rolls on. The Saharian city
stands as if by magic on the banks of
the waters which rise to the tufts OF the
palm trees, but few days only elapse
ere all disappears, leaving the district
rich and fruitful. The inhabitants are
not migratory people, and, unlike the
tent-dwellers Of the northern slope, 1--we
I in substantial houses with thatchet!
roofs and ceiling of cane laid upon joist
of alive wood. These houses generally
consist of one room, and have no turni-
ture except mats on the floor and upon
the walls for three or four feet high.
Beds are sometimes found, but no one
thinks of sleeping on them. The walls
are whitewashed and inscribed with
verses from the Koran. The inhabit-
ants are made up of'genuine Arabs and
Berbers, or Kaybles, as the French call
them. Jews are found in every oasis,
and are very prosperous and In
fuential. doing much OF the trading
and making up of the great caravans.
These merchants frequently dress in
very gaudy and fantastic style, with gor-
geous turban and sleeves of different
colors,. one, being, perhaps, green ana
one red, and the skirt a bright yellow.
They are not allowed to wear chekla,
or red woolen cap, but may wear a
black cap, and can only wear black
slippers, which they must remove
whenever they step outside the ghetto,
and must step aside to the left when
they meet q Moslem, and are not al
lowed to ride horse. The men are
handsome, and the women uncom-
monty pretty, and do not cover their
faces; neither do the Kayble women.
as is the custom of other women of the
Sahara. Among the Kaybles of the
mountain region passport, or annaya,
from q sheik or marabout brings pro-
lection and hospitality. The annaya is
sometimes o belt, sometimes stick. A
stranger can travel anywhere and meet
with cordial welcome. This is some
thing like a passport, is gratuitous, and
not vised. The rule is to lodge the
stranger for three days. and they do this
with kindness and care that is rarel ~
found in q country where payment IS
expected. The Berber is not as hospii-
table as the Arab, but my companion,
Ben Yusef, being descendant OF the
prophet, and l being provided with an
annaya, we found no lack of that bar
baric virtue anywhere. The maxim
that " fingers were made before forks"
must have originated with the Moslems,
as that article is unknown among them.
On one occasion, when dining with a
distinguished sheik, he asked me if l
had ever eaten with my hands before.
"Yak foodna ALA" "God have pity, ex-
claimed one of the guests, "don't the
Christian dogs eat with their hands"
mo" replied Ben Yusef, when I was
in Italy l ate with a fork" "God be
gracious to my father" returned be;
"our master Mohammed ate with his
right hand" Our host. in order to
atone for this seeming rudeness, called
to an attendant and gave him a juicy
piece of meat in his fingers to take to
me as mark of his friendship. After
dinner we invariably had coffee and a
prayer.
Arriving at the first oasis, Fizig,
which is some ten or twelve miles in
circumference and contains q popula-
ton Of 10000, we found the celebrated
Hammam, or hot springs, 80 famous
for the cure of syphilitic complaints so
prevalent in this country; here we en-
tered into the negotiations Of the pur-
chase of a camel, and succeeded in max
ing an exchange of one of our donkeys
for specimen of this interesting and
useful animal, giving difference
of fifty metkals or about twenty
dollars. Joining a number OF Moor
ish and Jewish traders, we began
cur caravan life, our camel travelling
with long swinging gait, t,neither rock,
trot, nor canter, like nothing / have
ever seen before. The jolting motion at
first was very uncomfortable, but after
a while became rather agreeable than
otherwise. Ben Yusef insists that we
must ride lady fashion, that being the
style among the Arabs. The camel in
strength, docility and indefatigable pa
tience is invaluable; goes seven or eight
days without water, travels thirty miles
a day, carries six or seven hundred
pounds, and subsists upon a quart of
beans or barley or a few balls Of -four a
day. We made the journey from Fizig
to Kuetsa in three days. This oasis has
a population of 5000, and is the seat of
considerable trade in lead and antimony,
several mines of these minerals being
found in the vicinity. Continuing our
journey, we reached the pleasant oasis
and village of Tatilet, our present stop
ping place. Between Keutsa and Hadju
is mountain exactly like church; in
fact, it bears O strong resemblance to
the typical Gothic cathedral. When
not entertained by the inhabitants we
set our tent and spread our blankets on
q dry bank of earth, perhaps covered
with flowers, prepare our simple repast
of barley, coarsely ground and carried
in leathern skins, which, mixed with
olive oil and salt, or made into a kind
of mush called koukussu, is quite palat-
able when the appetite is sharpened
with hunger. Soon after day break we
are ready 10 "fold our tent, like the
Arabs, and as silently steal away" The
Arab tent is merely large square piece
of camel's hair cloth, suspended a foot
or two above the ground by stakes
driven into the sand. Our tent was often
pitched in lovely fower-bed OF such
rich and various hues as one seldom
meets in a cultivated flower garden.
With a clear sky, brilliant sunshine,
and ripping stream, nothing can be
added in the way of calm rational enjoy
ment.
Wells of water are found under
branches which are religiously replaced,
for a we'll in the Sahara is sacred spot,
which demands the care and protection
of every traveller. Many of these springs
are held in religious veneration, and
on Wednesdays fowls are sacrificed a.
the holy fountains Many tombs are
held sacred. and on Friday, the Mo-
hammcdan Sabbath, they visit the ceme-
teries, from the belief that the souls Of
the dead return to their graves on that