the šeʻîb of al-Mnâwaḫ, if he had not already proceeded farther on to the rain pond Ḫabra Minwa’.
Changing our direction somewhat to the east-northeast, we hurried over a bare, undulating plain covered with coarse gravel until we reached the šeʻîb in question. At about five o’clock we perceived on a broad elevation a long row of black spots which vanished for a while in the brown atmospheric layer and then reappeared. Gradually these spots increased in size, remained more firmly in their places, and were transformed into a row of tents. It was the camp of ʻAwde abu Tâjeh. Mḥammad recognized the chief’s tent from afar and we made our way towards it.
AT THE CAMP OF ʻAWDE ABU TÂJEH
Several men came out of their tents and stared at us inquisitively. The chief’s tent was open towards the east, so the men’s division was located in its southern portion as the men’s division is always to the right. Turning towards it, we rode round the long tent ropes and ordered our camels to kneel at about thirty paces south of the tent. ʻAwde, accompanied by several younger chiefs, came towards me, embraced and kissed me, and led me into his tent, where he assigned me to the place of honor north of the fire near the partition that divides the men’s and women’s quarters. I sat down on a small rug and rested my left arm on a pile of small cushions. ʻAwde sat at my right on a long carpet which was spread out alongside the back wall of the tent. My two companions, Tûmân and Rifʻat, sat on the carpet with him. Our baggage was left outside, in care of the servant Šerîf.
The tent was crowded with more than fifty persons who greeted me one by one. When the greetings were concluded, ʻAwde beckoned to a negro who was boiling coffee and tea over the fire, whereupon we were each served three times with several drops of black coffee and a cup of sweetened tea. Just then a rifle shot resounded behind the camp, causing all the youths present to leap up, arms in hand, and rush out in the direction of the shot. After a while they returned, announcing that there was no trouble, the shot having been fired by a mischievous herdsman. I was surprised to see that each man had a cartridge belt slung around his body and that even when they were sitting in the tent they
