News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1882-10-19
SONS OF THE DESERT.
THE LIBERTY THEY ONCE EN-
JOYED.

THE LIBERTY THEY ONCE EN-
JOYED.
Decentralization Ensuing Upon the
Construction of the Suez Canal.
The number of Bedouins who joined
Arab1 Pasha's forces during the late
Anglo Egyptian war has been variously
estimated at from 10000 to 10000, and
although great things were expected OF
these children of the desert, little OF
nothing has been beard of their exploits.
The truth is that of late Egyptian Bed
ouins have very much degenerated.
They are the terror of the villagers
whose habitations border on the desert,
and in acts of cruelty and villainy are
unsurpassed.
Before the Suez Canal was built the
Bedouins were at liberty to roam from
Beyruth, in Syria, all through Arabia.
Egypt, and Tripoli, to the Great Sahara
Desert and back, but since this great
engineering work has been completed
the Egyptian Bedouins have been cut
off from their Syrian and Arabian
brethren, and, being at war with the
Tripolitan tribes, have been obliged to
confne themselves to the desert bor-
dering on the Egyptian, Nubian, and
Abyssinian Nile. Although the area of
this desert considerably exceeds ,00O,-
900 square miles; it has been proved too
small for the roaming disposition of the
Bedouins.
When the Egyptian Bedouins could
cross from Africa into Asia, they started
on their voyage with large focks of
an bs and young camels, which grazed
and grew on their way, and were sold
on arriving in Arabia or Syria, after a
march of one or two years. With the
proceeds the Bedouins bought colts, to
be again sold, and at large profit, on
their return to Egyp' or Tripoli, or
even AIgiers or M ,roco. Their fire.
quent visits to Mecca and Medina,
which were oftet on their way, inspired
them with enough religion to deter
them from committing acts of cruelty
and bloodshed, and their savage natures
we're somewhat tempered by contact
with civilization at the various markets
they visited.
Now all this is changed, and the Egyp-
tian Bedouins, finding themselves cut
off from the outer world, with no pros
poets of trade, have become desperate
assassins, thieves, kidnappers, and slave
dealers. The latter is their most profit
able occupation. The Bedouins yet
acknowledge their chiefs and pay very
great respect to them. These are either
hereditary, and often have the rank of
Emir, or are selected because of their
age, wisdom, or great bravery. Such
chiefs are called Sheiks.
The Emir or Sheik is an absolute
monarch, with the right to put to death
any member of his tribe. He makes all
treaties with other tribes, leads in war,
buys and sells for the tribe, and fixes
the route, destination, and duration of
an expedition. He has right to claim
as his wife the daughter of any of his
subjects, and has the first choice of any
slaves that may be captured. The
strength of the tribes varies from 500 to
5000 or 0,000 men.
Their kidnapping and slave dealing
are followed in this way: The Emirs
and Sheiks meet on the borders of the
Red Sea, as near Souakim as possible, in
November of each year, when they deter
mine the kidnapping ground of each
tribe, and the roads to be taken, that
one tribe may not interfere with
another. Bonds are given for the full
fillment of this compact, and number
of maidens are for better security con-
signed by each tribe to the Jemmah
tribe, which acts as referee, and keeps
them as hostages until the tribes return,
when, if it is proved that tribe has
broken faith, the maidens deposited by |
that tribe are handed over to the tribe |
that has been injured.
Having made their arrangements,
they break bread, share salt, and pass
the narghileh, without which no Bed
ouin compact is ever considered sealed.
Each tribe then starts on the route as
signed to it. So secret are these plans
that, although the Nubians, Abyssin-
ians and Soudanese are always on the
alert, they seldom know of the presence
of Bedouins until it is too late. The
Bedouins hide for few days in the
vicinity of each village which they in
tend to raid, and after ascertaining the
number of villagers, their habits and
means of resistance, proceed on their
voyage into the interior until they ar
rive at the end of the country which
their agreement entities them to pill
age.
The tribe retraces its footsteps, and
attacks village after village, each ac-
,ording to prearranged plan. Various
are employed. Oneis to set fire
10 village in many places simultane-
)usly, and as the terrified inhabitants
escape from the confagration they fall 1
nto the hands of the Bedouins, who in
,ariably murder the old men and women
md the very young children, but carry
,ff those between 5 and II years old 1
The houses and mud huts which have !
escaped the fire are ransaeked, and the I
laves are made to carry the booty. [
The poor creatures are chained to- {
,ether, and often carry goods and drive 6
attic once their own. They are kept t
ogether in large circle formed by the |
on horseback. Another method i
# the Bedouins is to fall suddenly on '
he women of a village, congregated at t
he common well, lift them into their G
adde's and gallop off, or to ride through I
he fields and carry off all the youths of {
village that are found at work. l
Should there be no loads for the slaves i
D carry, a number of Bedouins ride to +
be nearest market town and buy ivory, i
ums, shells, ostrich feathers and dye r
'oods, with which they load their vIc- c
ms, and which they sell at a large g
roft on their return to Souakim. The q
cruel and atrocious treat f
lent these slaves endure, is matter of
otoriety in the East, theIsufferings of G
le younger girls and boys being es- G
ecially dreadful.
Foreign anti-slavery societies have I
aDaatadly attemnted tn mt a storo IN | i,