The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1882-11-23
The Sons Of the Desert.

these children of the desert, little O.
nothing has been heard of their exploits
The truth is that of late Egyptian Be
douins have very much degenerated
They are the terror of the villagers whose
habitations border on the desert, and il
acts of cruelty and villainy are unsur
passed Before the Suez Canal was
built the Bedouins were at liberty to roam
from Beyruth in Syria all through Ara
bia, Egypt and Tripol, to the great
Sahara Desert and back, but since this
great engineering work has been com.
pleted, 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
contine themselves to the desert bordering
on the Egyptian, Nubian and Abyssinian
Nile Although the area of this desert
considerably exceeds 100000 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 lambs
and young camels, which grazed and
grew on their way, and were sold on ar
irving 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 re-
turn to Egypt or Tripoli, or even Algiers
or Morocco. Their frequent visits to
Mecca and Medina, which were often on
their way, inspired them with enough
religion to deter them from committing
acts of cruelty and bloodshed, and their
savage natures were somewhat tempered
by contact with civilization at the various
markets they visited.
Now all this is changed and the Egvp-
tan Bedouins, finding themselves cut off
from the outer world, with no prospects
of trade, have become desperate assass-
ms, thieves, kidnapers and slave deal
ers. The latter is their most profitable
occupation. The Bedouins yet acknowl-
edge 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. lie 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
Alright to claim as his wife the daughter
OF any of his subjects, and has the first
choice OF any slaves that may be capt
Ilred. The strength of the tribes varies
from 500 to 5000 or 10000 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 No
vember 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 fulfilment of
this compact, and number of maidens
are for better security consigned bv each
tribe to the Jemmah tribe, which acts as
referee, and keeps them as hostages un-
til the tribes return, when, if it is proved
that tribe has broken faith, the mai
dens 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
narghlleh, without which no Bedouin
compact is considered sealed Each tribe
then starts on the route assigned to il.
So secret are these plans that, although
the Nubians, Abyssinians 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 intend to raid, and after as
pertaining the number of villagers. their |
habits and means of resistance, proceed
on their voyage into the interior until |
they arrive at the end of the country
which their agreement entities them to
plllage. The tribe retraces its footsteps
and attacks village after village, each &C
cordmg to q pre-arranged plan. Vari-
Gus methods are employed. One is to
set hre to a village in MANY places
simultaneously, and as the terrified in
habltants escape from the CONFEDERATION
they fall into the hands of the Bedouins.
whe invariably murder the old men and
women and the very young children.
but carry off those between five and
twelve years old. The houses and mud
huts which have escaped the fire are ran
sacked and the slaves are made to carry
the booty.
The poor creatures are chained to-
sether, and often carry goods and drive
cattle once their own. They are kent
.ogether in a large circle formed by the
horseback. Another method
of the Bedouins is to fall suddenly on the
women of village, congreeated at the
common well, lift them into their saddles.
tnd gallop of, or to ride through the fields
md carry off all the youths of a VILLAGE
hat are found at work. Should there
be no loads for the slaves to carry a
number of Bedouins ride to the nearest
market town and buy ivory, gums,
hells, ostrich feathers and dvewoods,
With which they load their victims. and
which they sell at large profit on their
eturn to Souakim. The shameful. cruel
.nd atrocious treatment these slaves en-
lure is a matter of notoriety in the East
ne sutferings of the younger bows and ,
urls being especially dreadful. Foreign
societies have repeatedly at I
empted to put stop to this, but have ,
ailed on account of the distance from ,
Ivillzation at which these countries Law ,
he late Khedive of Egvpt emnloved ;