to come to an explanation. My embassies had hitherto succeeded so
well, that I accepted this with pleasure, and set out with a single
guide: but scarcely had we reached the tent of Mohdi, who lay nearest
to us, when their advanced guard came upon us like wild beasts, robbed
us of our presents and our clothes, put irons on our feet, and left us
naked on the burning sands. In vain I entreated permission to explain;
I was threatened with instant death if I persisted in remonstrating.
Some moments afterwards, I saw the perfidious Absi advancing to me:
I then understood the cause of the inconceivable treatment of which
I had been the victim; he had been travelling from tribe to tribe to
raise enemies against us. I was so enraged at the sight of him, that
my fallen courage revived, and I determined to die bravely if I could
not live to take vengeance. He approached, and, spitting in my face,
cried, “Dog of an infidel! in what manner do you choose that I should
separate your soul from your body?”--“My soul,” I replied, “is not in
your power; my days are numbered by the great God: if they are to end
now, it signifies little in what manner; but if I am still to live,
you have no power to kill me.” He then withdrew to excite the Bedouins
against me afresh, and men, women, and children came to overwhelm me
with outrages: some spit in my face, others threw sand in my eyes;
several pricked me with their djerids. I was kept twenty-four hours
without eating or drinking, and suffering a martyrdom it is impossible
to describe. Towards the evening of the second day, a young man, named
labour, came to me, and drove away the children who were tormenting
me. I had already remarked him; for, of all those I had seen during
this day, he alone had not insulted me. He offered to bring me bread
and water at nightfall. “Hunger and thirst,” I replied, thanking him,
“are of little consequence; but if you could assist me to escape hence,
I would reward you generously.” He promised to attempt it, and in the
middle of the night brought me the key of my fetters, which he had
had the address to procure while the chiefs were at supper. He opened
them without noise; and without taking time to throw on my clothes,
we ran back to my tribe. All were asleep in the camp, except the four
negroes who kept guard at the entrance of Drayhy’s tent: they uttered a
cry on seeing me, and in great haste woke their master, who came with
Sheik Ibrahim: they embraced me with tears, and handsomely rewarded my
liberator. The Drayhy expressed the most lively grief at the treatment
I had experienced, and the greatest indignation at this violation of
the rights of nations. He immediately gave orders for battle, and at
sunrise we perceived that the enemy had done the same. On the first
day, there was no marked advantage on either side. Auad, chief of the
tribe Suallema, lost his mare, for which he had refused twenty-five
thousand piastres. All the Bedouins participated in his affliction,
and the Drayhy gave him one of his best horses, very inferior however
to the superb animal he had lost. The next day the battle was renewed
with increased fury, and our loss was more considerable than that of
the enemy. We were obliged to act with extreme caution, having only
fifteen thousand troops to oppose to him. Forty of our men fell into
their hands, while we made only fifteen prisoners; but amongst these
was Hamed, son of the chief Saker. The captives on both sides were put
in irons.
To these two days of fighting succeeded a tacit truce of three,
during which the two armies continued to face each other without any
demonstration of hostility. On the third day, the chief Saker, with
a single attendant, came to our camp. He was uneasy for his son, a
valiant young man, adored by his father and by all the Bedouins of his
tribe; and he came to ransom him. Hamed had been very well treated by
us; I had myself bound up his wounds. The Drayhy received Saker with
great distinction. The latter, after the customary civilities, spoke of
the war--expressed his astonishment at the Drayhy’s ardour against the
Wahabees, and said that he could not credit so much disinterestedness,
under which some secret motives or personal views must needs be
couched. “You cannot take it ill,” added he, “that I do not engage with
you without knowing your object. Take me into your confidence, and I
will second you to the utmost of my power.” We replied, that we were
not in the habit of admitting to our secrets those of whose friendship
we had no assurance; but that if he chose to sign our treaty, we should
have no concealments from him. He then asked to be made acquainted
with this engagement, and after having listened to a lecture of the
different articles, with which he seemed to be very well content,
he assured us that things had been very differently represented to
him, and repeated the calumnies that Absi had spread concerning us.
He ended by affixing his seal to the treaty, and afterwards pressed
us to explain the object we were aiming at. Sheik Ibrahim told him
that our intention was to open a passage from the coasts of Syria to
the frontiers of India, to an army of a hundred thousand men, under a
powerful conqueror, who would relieve the Bedouins from the yoke of the
Turks, restore to them the sovereignty of the country, and enable them
to obtain possession of the treasures of India. He affirmed that there
was nothing to be lost, but every thing to gain, in the execution of
this project, the success of which depended upon the union of forces
and the harmony of inclinations. He promised that their camels should
be paid at a high price for the transport of the provisions for this
great army, and made him look to the commerce of these vast countries
as likely to become a source of inexhaustible riches to them.
Saker entered fully into our views; but it was still necessary to
explain to him that the Wahabee[J] might counteract our plans; that his
religious fanaticism would naturally be opposed to the passage of a
Christian army; that his spirit of domination, which had already made
him master of Yemen, Mecca and Medina, would extend his pretentions to
Syria, where the Turks could not offer him any serious resistance:
that, on the other hand, a great maritime power, enemy to the one we
favoured, would infallibly make an alliance with him, and would send
forces by sea to cut us off from the road of the desert. After much
debate, in which Saker showed both judgment and sagacity, he entirely
acquiesced in our arguments, and promised to use all his influence with
the other tribes. It was agreed that he should be chief of the Bedouins
of the country we were then in, as the Drayhy was of those of Syria
and Mesopotamia: he engaged between this time and the same period in
the next year to unite the different tribes under his orders, while we
should pursue our route; and promised that at our return all should
be made easy to us. We separated, enchanted with each other, after
loading his son with presents, and liberating all the other prisoners.
Saker, on his part, sent back our forty men; and the next day wrote
us word that Mohdi and Douackhry no longer opposed our projects, and
that they were about to remove to hold a conference with Bargiass, at
three hours’ distance. In fact, they broke up their camp, and we did
the same; for the assemblage of so large a number of men and cattle had
covered the earth with filth, and rendered our continuance in the place
quite intolerable.
We encamped at six hours’ distance, at Maytal el Ebbed, where we rested
eight days. Saker came there to us, and it was agreed that he alone
should undertake to raise the Bedouins of these districts, while
we should return into Syria, lest by too long abandoning our first
conquest, our enemies should take advantage of our absence to embroil
our affairs and detach the tribes from our alliance.
Besides, the spring was already advanced, and it behooved us to
hasten thither, lest the pasturages of Syria and Mesopotamia should
be occupied by others. We deferred then, till the year following, the
project of pushing our recognizance as far as the frontiers of India.
By that period, Saker would have had time to prepare the tribes of his
neighbourhood to second us; “for,” said he, “the tree is uprooted by
one of its branches.”
Some days’ march brought us back to Mesopotamia. In two more we crossed
the Euphrates near Mansour and the desert called El Hamad. We encamped
in a place where water is only to be had by digging deep holes, and is
at last only fit for the beasts. Man cannot drink of it. The place is
called Halib El Dow, because milk is here the only beverage.
We went from thence to El Sarha, a district abundantly supplied
with water and herbage, and here expected to be indemnified for our
privations; but a particular circumstance speedily dashed our hopes.
The soil is covered with an herb called _Kraffour_, which the camels
eat with avidity, and which has the property of inebriating them to the
point of madness. They run to the right and left, breaking every thing
they encounter, overthrowing the tents, and pursuing the men.
During four-and-twenty hours no one could get any rest; the Bedouins
were constantly employed in mastering the camels and in calming their
fury. I should have preferred actual war to this continual struggle
with animals whose prodigious strength, and delirious exaltation
presented incalculable dangers. But it appears that the triumphs of
skill over force has great charms for these children of nature; for,
when I went to the Drayhy to deplore the state of fever in which this
novel revolution held us, he only laughed, and assured me it was one of
the greatest amusements of the Bedouins. While we were talking, a camel
of the largest size made straight towards us, with his head erect, and
kicking up the dust with his great feet. The Drayhy, seizing one of the
stakes of his tent, waited for the furious animal, and struck him a
violent blow on the head. The weapon broke, and the camel turned away
to exercise his ravages elsewhere. A dispute then arose as to which was
the strongest, the camel or the sheik. The latter averred, that if his
club had resisted, he should have cleft the skull of his adversary; the
attendants maintained the superiority of the animal, who had broken
the obstacle opposed to him; and my decision, that their strength was
equal, because it was a drawn battle, excited the mirth of the whole
audience.
The next day we broke up our camp, and were overtaken on the road by a
messenger from Saker, who sent us an account of the ill-success of his
negotiation with Bargiass. Our enemy Absi, who was high in favour with
the latter chief, had exasperated him against us; had persuaded him to
join Mehanna, and then to form an alliance with the Wahabees, who were
to send an army for our destruction. The Drayhy answered, that this
was no cause for uneasiness--that God was stronger than they were, and
could with ease give the victory to the good cause. After this incident
we continued our journey.
We next learned that the tribe El Calfa was encamped at Zualma. The
Drayhy considered it important to secure the co-operation of this
powerful and courageous tribe. Its sheik, Giassem, was an old friend
of the Drayhy; but he could neither read nor write, and it therefore
became dangerous to address a letter to him, which would be read by a
Turk, and might be essentially injurious to our affairs, as experience
had taught us in the instance of the scribe Absi. Again, then, the
negotiation was committed to me; and I was sent to him, with an escort
of six men mounted on dromedaries. We arrived, after a journey of three
days, at the spot indicated, and were greatly disconcerted to find that
the tribe had removed their camp, leaving no trace of the road they had
taken. We passed the night without eating or drinking, and deliberated
the following day on what we were to do. The affair of most immediate
necessity was to find water; for it is well known that thirst is more
insupportable than hunger, and we might also reasonably expect at the
same time to meet both with the springs and the tribe. We wandered
three entire days without finding either water or food. My palate was
so perfectly dry, that I could neither move my tongue nor articulate a
sound; I had exhausted all the artificial means of mitigating thirst,
as keeping pebbles and balls of lead in my mouth; my face was become
black, and my strength was forsaking me, when suddenly my companions
cried out, “Gioub el Ghamin!” (the name of a well in the desert,) and
darted forward. These men, inured to fatigue, sustained privations
in a manner inconceivable to me, and were far from imagining to what
a deplorable condition I was reduced. On seeing them run from me,
the irritation of my nerves, excited by fatigue, made me despair of
reaching the well, where I fancied they would not leave a single drop
of water for me; and I threw myself on the ground weeping. Seeing me
thus overcome, they returned, and encouraged me to make an effort to
follow them. We arrived at length at the well, and one of them leaning
over the parapet, drew his sabre, declaring he would cut off the head
of the first man who dared approach. “Be governed by my experience,”
said he, “or you will all perish.” The authoritative tone he assumed
had its effect upon us, and we all obeyed in silence. He called us one
by one, beginning with me, and made us first lean over the margin of
the well to inhale some of its moisture. Then drawing a small quantity
of water, he wetted our lips with his fingers; by degrees he allowed
us to drink a few drops, then a small cup full; and having pursued
this rational treatment for three hours, he said, “You may now drink
without risk; but if you had not listened to me, you would have been
all dead men; for drinking without precaution, after long privation,
is certain destruction.” We passed the night on this spot, drinking
continually, as much for nourishment as to slake our thirst, which,
notwithstanding this indulgence, seemed insatiable. In the morning we
climbed an eminence that we might see farther round us; alas! nothing
but the boundless desert met our view. At length, however, one of
the Bedouins thought he descried an object in the distance, and soon
asserted that it was an howdah covered with scarlet cloth, and borne by
a camel of great size. His companions saw nothing, but having no better
guide to follow, we turned our steps in the direction indicated; and,
in fact, soon afterwards we found ourselves approaching a great tribe,
and distinctly saw the howdah which had served us for a pharos: happily
it proved to be the tribe we were in quest of.
Giassem received us kindly, and did his best to remedy our fatigue. I
satisfactorily accomplished the object of my mission to him, and he
dictated a letter to the Drayhy, in which he undertook to place his
men and goods under his orders, saying that the alliance between them
ought to be of the closest kind, on account of their long-standing
friendship. I set out on my return, provided with this important
document, but, on the other hand, much interested in the news he had
imparted to me of the arrival of a princess, daughter of the King of
England, in Syria, where she was displaying the luxuries of royalty,
and had been received with all sorts of honours by the Turks. She had
made magnificent presents to Mehanna el Fadel, and had been escorted
by him to Palmyra, where she had profusely distributed her largesses,
and had made a formidable party among the Bedouins, who had proclaimed
her queen.[K] Sheik Ibrahim, to whom I carried this intelligence, was
greatly disturbed by it, believing it to be an intrigue to ruin our
plans.
The Drayhy, perceiving our misgivings, reassured us by declaring that
if they sowed sacks of gold from Hama to the gates of India, they would
be unable to detach a single tribe from the solemn engagement which had
been contracted.
“The word of a Bedouin is sacred,” he added; “follow up your projects
without uneasiness. For my part, my campaign is planned. I am going to
the Horan to watch the proceedings of Ebn Sihoud, whom alone we have
cause to fear. I shall then return, and encamp in the environs of Homs.”
Sheik Ibrahim, having no longer either money or merchandise, determined
to send me immediately to Corietain, whence I should despatch a
messenger to Aleppo to procure a supply of cash. I went joyfully, as
the expedition gave me a prospect of visiting my friends and reposing
some time amongst them. My first day’s journey was performed without
accident; but on the following day, about four o’clock, at a spot
named Cankoum, I fell into the midst of what I believed to be a
friendly tribe, but which proved to be that of Bargiass. It was now too
late to recede; I therefore made for the tent of the sheik, preceded
by my negro Fodda: but scarcely had I set foot on the ground, when he
was massacred before my eyes, and I saw the same weapons which had
despatched him raised upon me. The shock was so great, that I have no
recollection of what followed, except that I cried out, “Stop! I claim
the protection of the daughter of Hedal!” and fainted. When I re-opened
my eyes, I found myself lying on a couch in a tent, surrounded by a
score of females, who were endeavouring to recall me to life: some were
holding burnt hair, vinegar, and onions to my nostrils; while others
bathed me in water, and introduced melted butter between my dry and
contracted lips. As soon as I had perfectly recovered my consciousness,
the wife of Bargiass took me by the hand, saying:
“Fear nothing, Abdallah: you are in the tent of the daughter of Hedal,
and no one has a right to injure you.”
Bargiass presenting himself shortly afterwards at the entrance of the
tent, to make his peace, as he said, with me,--“By the head of my
father,” cried she, “you shall not cross my threshold till Abdallah is
entirely cured!”
I remained three days under Bargiass’s tent, tended in the most
affectionate manner by his wife, who was negotiating meanwhile a
reconciliation between her husband and me; but I felt so rancorous a
resentment at his brutality that I found it difficult to pardon him: at
length, however, I consented to bury the past in oblivion, on condition
of his signing the treaty with the Drayhy. We then embraced and entered
into an oath of fraternity. Bargiass presented me with a negro, saying,
“I have sacrificed your silver, but in return I give you a jewel;”
a play of words upon the names of the two negroes, _Fodda_, silver,
and _Gianhar_, jewel. He afterwards gave an entertainment in honour
of our reconciliation. In the midst of the feast a courier arrived
at full speed from the Drayhy, bringing to Bargiass a declaration of
exterminating war, and full of the most opprobrious epithets. “Oh! thou
traitor,” he wrote, “who violatest the sacred law of the Bedouins! thou
wretch for ever infamous, who massacrest thy guests! thou Ottoman under
a black skin! know that all the blood of thy tribe would not suffice to
compensate for that of my dear Abdallah! Prepare thyself for battle,
for my courser will rest no more till I have destroyed the last of
thy race!” I hastened my departure, to prevent any collision, and to
comfort Sheik Ibrahim and the Drayhy. I cannot describe the joy and
astonishment which my presence caused; and so miraculous did my return
appear, that they could scarcely credit the evidence of their eyes,
till I had related all my adventures.
The next morning I again took the road to Corietain, where I waited
for twenty days the return of the messenger I had sent to Aleppo,--a
respite which I found very seasonable both for repose and for the
repair of my tattered wardrobe; but necessity protracted my stay beyond
my inclination, for news was spread that the Wahabees had invaded
the desert of Damascus and ravaged several villages, massacreing men
and children without exception, and pillaging the women, whom alone
they spared. The Sheik of Corietain, too weak to offer the smallest
resistance, caused the gates of the town to be closed, forbade any
egress from it, and tremblingly awaited the issue. We soon learned
that the enemy having attacked Palmyra, the inhabitants had retired
within the precincts of the temple, and there successfully defended
themselves; and that the Wahabees, unable to force their position,
had contented themselves with killing the camel drivers and carrying
off their camels. From thence they proceeded to ransack the village
of Arack, and had dispersed themselves throughout the environs. This
sinister intelligence alarmed me for the fate of my messenger, who
however arrived safe and sound with Sheik Ibrahim’s money. He had taken
refuge for a short time at Saddad, the inhabitants of which having paid
a pretty heavy contribution, had for the moment nothing more to fear.
Profiting by this circumstance, I laid aside my Bedouin habiliments,
and dressing myself as a Christian of Saddad, made my way to that
village, where I obtained news of the Drayhy, who was encamped with the
tribe of Bargiass at Ghandah el Cham. I rejoined him the first possible
opportunity, and learned with chagrin that a formidable coalition had
been effected between Mehanna el Fadel and the tribe established at
Samarcand; and that by their intrigues with the governors of Hems and
Hama, some Turks and Bedouins had been drawn into the alliance against
us. In this critical conjuncture I bethought myself of our friend the
Pacha Soliman, and persuaded Sheik Ibrahim to visit Damascus for the
purpose of consulting with him. We set out at once, and alighted at
the house of his prime minister, Hagim, from whom we learned the name
of the supposed English princess: he informed us that it was through
the influence of Lady Stanhope’s presents that Mehanna had acquired
so powerful a party amongst the Turks. These details confirmed our
suspicions that England, aware of our projects, was subsidizing the
Wahabees on one hand, while on the other she endeavoured, through
the intervention of Lady Stanhope, to unite the Bedouins of Syria
with the Turks. An Englishman, whom we met at the house of M.
Chabassan, assuming the name of Sheik Ibrahim, added strength to these
conjectures: he endeavoured to extract something from us, but we were
too much upon our guard. Having obtained what we wished from Soliman
Pacha, we hastened to rejoin our tribe.
The Drayhy’s courage was not diminished; he assured us he could make
head against a much stronger array. The firman granted us by Soliman
Pacha required the governors of Hems and Hama to hold in respect his
faithful friend and well-beloved son, the Drayhy Ebn Challan, who ought
to be obeyed, being supreme chief of the Desert of Damascus; and that
any alliance in opposition to him was contrary to the will of the
Porte. Furnished with this document, we advanced towards Hama; and
some days afterwards Sheik Ibrahim received an invitation from Lady
Hester Stanhope to pay her a visit in company with his wife, Madame
Lascaris, who was still at Acre; an invitation that annoyed him the
more, as he had for three years avoided sending any intelligence to his
wife, in order to conceal from the world the place of his residence and
his intimacy with the Bedouins. It was necessary, however, to send an
answer to Lady Stanhope; he therefore wrote that he would do himself
the honour of visiting her as early as circumstances would permit, and
despatched at the same time a courier to his wife, desiring her to
decline the invitation. But it was too late; Madame Lascaris, anxious
to ascertain the existence of her husband, had instantly obeyed Lady
Stanhope’s summons to Hama, in hopes of gaining some traces of him
from that lady: M. Lascaris thus found himself under the necessity of
rejoining her.
Meanwhile Mehanna advanced nearer and nearer, fancying himself certain
of co-operation from the Osmanlis; but the Drayhy, judging the time
arrived for producing the pacha’s firman, sent it to Hems and Hama
by the hands of his son Saher, who was received with the greatest
honours. After inspecting the order of which he was the bearer, the
two governors placed their troops at his disposal, declaring Mehanna a
traitor for calling in the Wahabees, the most inexorable enemies of the
Turks.
Lady Hester Stanhope sent an invitation to Saher, and overwhelmed him
with presents for himself, his wife, and mother; gave a saddle and
boots to every horseman of his suite, and announced her intention of
shortly visiting his tribe. M. Lascaris’ visit ended less agreeably:
Lady Stanhope having vainly endeavoured, by questions ingeniously
contrived, to draw from him some explanation of his connexion with
the Bedouins, finally assumed a tone of authority which afforded M.
Lascaris a pretext for a rupture. He sent his wife back to Acre, and
quitted Lady Stanhope at open variance with her.