North of the šeʻîb of ar-Rwejǧîde, the šeʻîb of aẓ-Ẓersi runs into the lowland of al-Ǧafar. This latter šeʻîb takes its origin in the šeʻibân of Ab-al-Ḥamâm, al-Bêẓa (al-Bêẓa being formed by the junction of the šeʻibân of Neǧel and ad-Daʻǧânijje), and, last of all, al-Ḳalât. Farther to the east rose the dark slopes of Rwêšed ar-Rawjân and Rwêšed al-ʻAṭšân, which run from the tabular hill of al-Burma. Eastward from al-Burma could be seen the shining hills of aš-Šhejba, in which the šeʻibân of Mdejfaʻât and Abu Ṭlejḥa have their origin. Behind aš-Šhejba are the heads of the šeʻibân of ʻAjrijje, Abu Sarâwîl, Riǧlet al-Ḫrâḳ, and al-Kzejme. From the east proceed the šeʻibân of aš-Šômeri, Ṛadejrât Zâjed, al-Ṛwejr, al-ʻArfa’, and finally al-ʻÂḏrijjât, separating the hills of Wadʻat aš-Šhaba’ from Wadʻat al-Ḥamra’ and aš-Šwêḥeṭ.[1]
To the northeast, between the šeʻibân of ʻAḳejḳa and al-Ǧemâǧem, there extends in a northeasterly direction a series of isolated hills called aṯ-Ṯwêrên, the last remnants of a stratum which has disappeared through the action of wind and rain. In the plain, the šeʻîb of al-Mṣawwal joins with the šeʻîb of ‘Aḳejḳa, with the united šeʻibân of Umm Ṛaẓa’ and Abu Dims, and still farther on with the šeʻîb of aš-Šîdijje, which rises near the pass al-Ḥdejb. On the right bank of the lower portion of the last-named šeʻîb is situated a group of yellowish elevations called al-Kbejda, which form the southern border of the actual lowland of al-Ǧafar.
ABU ṬARFA’ TO ‘AŠÛŠ ABU ṚADÎR
At 7.31 P. M. we again took up our march. The soldiers guarding the station of Abu Ṭarfa’ heard our voices and shot at us twice, thinking that we wished to attack them. The Bedouins creep round the railway stations under cover of night, fling themselves upon the soldiers, rob them of their arms and ammunition, and vanish before the victims can recover from their surprise. The garrison at Abu Ṭarfa’ had already been attacked and robbed in this manner on two occasions and was on the alert.
At 8.22 we reached the railway track, which projected about thirty centimeters above the plain. It was not easy to persuade our camels to cross the rails. They became frightened at the unexpected sight and fled to right and left, so that we were finally compelled to dismount and force them across one by one. We continued in the same direction at a rapid pace through Šaṭnet umm Ṛaẓa and Abu Dims. Camels proceed at night more rapidly and steadily than by day, espe-
- ↑ These two Wadʻa hills and their neighborhood recall the region of Mawdû‘, which Jâḳût (1224 A. D.), Muʻǧam (Wüstenfeld), Vol. 4, p. 678, and Abu-l-Faraǧ al-Iṣfahâni (Aṛâni [Bûlâḳ, 1285 A. H.], Vol. 9, pp. 148—149) locate in the territory of the Beni Murra belonging to the tribe of Ṛaṭafân. It was there that the valiant warrior Hirm ibn Ḍemḍem al-Murri used to dwell.—The surrounding district of al-Wadʻa once belonged to the Beni Murra, the warrior’s kindred. In the poem quoted, the name was changed to Mawdûʻ for the sake of the preceding rhyme, huǧû‘.
