CHAPTER III
AL-ḤOMEJMA TO AL-ʻAḲABA
AL-ḤOMEJMA TO ḪARM AL-MERṢED
At 4.25 P. M. we left al-Ḥomejma and proceeded southward over the plain of Ḫarḫûra alongside the broad channel of aṣ-Ṣîḥ. The plain the east of the channel was planted in places with crops of wheat and barley. Between the various fields there are small clumps of shrubbery formed of ratam, rimṯ, and thorny silla. On the west side rise the steep granite rocks of Šejḳer, cut by the šeʻîb of Rîḥân from Msâwer and Ḏnêb, on the northern side of which gushes forth the spring of Abu ʻAǧârem. To the south of the Rîḥân šeʻîb the peak of aṣ-Ṣôr rises above a flat-topped rocky upland and behind it the two prisms Ṭabaḳât Kalḫa.
Toward 7.35 we caught the sounds of loud conversation and the melancholy strains of the rebâba (rebec or single-stringed viol), and before long we noticed the smell of brandy, for we were drawing near to the Post and Telegraph station of al-Ḳwêra, beside which we encamped at eight o’clock. We were surrounded by a number of men, who in correct and broken Arabic asked us who we were and where we were going. Ismaʻîn replied to their questions, whereupon they brought us fuel so that Šerîf could cook the supper. In the meantime we ascertained the latitude (temperature: 14.2° C). After supper we were obliged to take part in the conversation and hence could not retire to rest until after midnight.
On Saturday, June 4, 1910, we remained at al-Ḳwêra until the afternoon. This ancient Roman stronghold has been newly populated. The telegraph line from Maʻân to al-ʻAḳaba runs around it. In 1908 a house was begun west of the stronghold for the use of the telegraph and postal official, but the building was not yet completed, as the ceiling and roof were wanting. In consequence, the official and his assistants lived under canvas in the courtyard of the old stronghold. About one-third of the stronghold was cleared of débris, and the small corner rooms were cleaned out and furnished for use as a shelter in the rainy season (Figs. 19, 20, 21). The of-
