of five hundred. Alone in the midst of them, I despaired of making
myself heard, and especially of being able to unite them in one
counsel. Independent in their character and manners, and irritated by
misfortune, they all mooted different opinions; and if neither hoped
to make his own prevail, at least each made it a point of honour to
maintain it obstinately, leaving all the others at liberty to do the
like. Some proposed removing to the Nedgde country, others to retire to
Samarcand: these vociferated imprecations against Abdallah, chief of
the Wahabee army; those denounced the Drayhy as the author of all their
misfortunes. Amid the conflict of voices, I armed myself with patience,
and endeavoured to conciliate all parties. I began by shaking their
confidence in the Wahabees; showing them that Abdallah must necessarily
have become their enemy, since they had abandoned him on the last day
of the battle, and that he was now seeking vengeance upon them: that in
going to Nedgde they voluntarily threw themselves under the domination
of Ebn Sihoud, who would extort from them oppressive contributions, and
compel them to bear the whole burden of a disastrous war: that having
once deserted his cause, and effected their withdrawal from his power,
they should not follow the example of the foolish bird, who no sooner
escapes the sportsman’s shot than he falls into the fowler’s net.
At last, the fable of the bundle of sticks occurred to my mind; and
thinking so simple a demonstration would make an impression on their
unsophisticated minds, I determined to make a practical application of
it before their eyes. Having exhorted them to be united, and by their
union to resist all oppression, I took from the hands of the sheiks
about thirty djerids, and presented one to the Emir Fares, requesting
he would break it, which he effected with ease. I then presented him
with two, and afterwards with three, all of which he broke in the same
manner, for he was a man of great muscular strength. I then placed
in his hand the whole bundle, which he could neither break nor bend.
“Machala,” said I, “thy strength is not sufficient;” and I then passed
the united spears to another, who succeeded no better. A general
murmur now arose in the assembly: “Who could split such a mass?” cried
they unanimously. “I take you at your word,” said I; and in the most
energetic language I could command, I applied the apologue to their
reasoning faculties,--adding, that so powerfully had I been affected by
their destitute condition, without clothing or shelter, that I pledged
myself to solicit from the Drayhy the restitution of their baggage and
tents, and that I was sufficiently acquainted with his magnanimity to
answer for the success of my application, if they entered heartily into
the alliance, of which I had just proved the advantages. Upon this they
all exclaimed with one voice: “Thou hast conquered, Abdallah; we are
thine in life and in death!” and all ran forward to embrace me. It was
then determined that they should give the Drayhy the rendezvous in the
plain of Halla, to affix their seal to the treaty.
Recrossing the Euphrates the next morning, I rejoined our tribe on the
fifth day, and found my friends uneasy at my protracted absence; but
the report of my fortunate negotiation filled them with joy. I have
already so frequently detailed meetings, feasts, and rejoicings of
every kind, that I shall not repeat the same narrative by describing
those which took place on this occasion.
The Emir Douackhry buried the seven stones, and thus consummated the
alliance; and after dinner I witnessed for the first time the ceremony
of swearing fidelity over bread and salt. The Drayhy then declared that
he was ready to fulfil the engagement I had contracted in his name, by
restoring the booty taken from the six tribes who had just united their
cause with his. But the generous will was insufficient--the means of
its execution were still to be provided. In the pillage of the Wahabee
and allied camp, the plunder of fifty tribes was confounded, and to
identify the property of each was no easy matter. It was decided that
the women alone were competent to the task; and it would be impossible
to form an idea of the exertion and fatigue of the five days employed
by them in recognising the cattle, tents, and baggage of the various
tribes. Every camel and sheep has two ciphers stamped with a hot iron
on the leg, those of the tribe and the proprietor. But when, as it
often happens, the ciphers are similar, or half effaced, the difficulty
of identifying them is extreme; and under the exhausting task of
reconciling such various pretensions, and deciding such harassing
controversies, which it required something more than generosity to
endure with patience, I was sometimes tempted to repent my momentary
impulse of compassion and my imprudent promise.
At this time a great caravan from Bagdad to Aleppo passed, and was
plundered by the Fedans and Sabhas. It was very richly laden with
indigo, coffee, spices, Persian carpets, Cashmires, pearls, and other
valuable articles, which we estimated at ten millions of piastres. No
sooner was the capture known, than merchants flocked to the desert,
some from a great distance, to purchase these treasures from the Arabs,
who sold, bartered, or rather gave them away almost for nothing.
For instance, they exchanged a measure of spices against an equal
measure of dates; a Cashmire shawl, worth a thousand francs, against
a black saddle-cloth; a chest of indigo for a linen dress; entire
pieces of India muslin for a pair of boots. A merchant from Moussoul
bought, for a shirt, a saddle-cloth, and a pair of boots, goods worth
fifteen thousand piastres; and a diamond ring was sold for a roll of
tobacco. I might have made my fortune on the occasion, but M. Lascaris
prohibited my either purchasing or receiving any thing as a gift, and I
scrupulously obeyed. Every day tribes arrived from the Nedgde country,
deserting the Wahabees to join us; some attracted by the Drayhy’s
extraordinary reputation, others driven by dissensions with King Ebn
Sihoud. One circumstance of that nature brought us five tribes in a
body. The emir of the tribe Beny Tay had a very beautiful daughter,
named Camara (the moon); Fehrab, son of the chief of a neighbouring
tribe, and a relative of the Wahabee, became enamoured of her, and
contrived to gain her affection; but the girl’s father discovering
their passion, forbade her speaking to the prince, and himself refused
to receive him or listen to his proposals, designing Camara for her
cousin Tamer; for it is a custom amongst the Bedouins, which reminds
one of those transmitted to us by the Bible, for the nearest kinsman
to be preferred to all other suitors when a maiden’s marriage is in
question.
Camara, however, neither swayed by the usages of her people, nor
intimidated by her father’s menaces, positively refused to espouse
her cousin; and her attachment acquiring strength in proportion to
the obstacles opposed to it, she lost no opportunity of corresponding
with her lover. The latter, seeing no hope of obtaining her parent’s
consent, resolved to run away with her, and opened the proposition to
her through an old woman whom he had gained. She gave her consent;
and he introduced himself into the tribe Beny Tay in the disguise of
a mendicant, and arranged with her the hour and circumstances of the
elopement. In the middle of the night the maiden stole fearfully out
of her father’s tent, to the prince, who was waiting for her at the
entrance of the camp. He placed her behind him on his mare, and dashed
across the plain; but the celerity of their flight could not conceal
them from the jealous eye of Tamer: enamoured of his cousin, and
determined to maintain his right, he had long watched the proceedings
of his rival, and every night mounted guard near Camara’s tent. At the
moment the lovers escaped, he was making his circuit; but immediately
perceiving them, he galloped in pursuit. Fehrab’s mare, endowed by
nature with all the fleetness of the Nedgdian race, and stimulated to
greater exertions by her master’s impatience, urged her course to its
highest speed; but, pressed by a double burden, she could at length no
longer give her wonted aid to her master--she fell; and Fehrab, seeing
himself on the point of being overtaken by Tamer, lifted his beloved
from the horse, and prepared for her defence. The combat was terrible,
and its sequel tragical. Tamer was victor, slew Fehrab, and seized his
cousin; but, exhausted by fatigue, and now in full security, he fell
asleep for a moment by her side. Camara, who had watched the influence
of slumber stealing over his senses, snatched up his sabre, stained
with the blood of her lover, and cut off the head of her ravisher;
then precipitating herself upon the point of his lance, pierced her
own heart. The three dead bodies alone were found by those who went in
search of them.
A murderous war between the two tribes was the consequence of this
melancholy event;--that of Fehrab, supported by the Wahabees, forced
Beny Tay to a retreat; and the latter, with four other tribes,[S] its
allies, came to solicit protection from the Drayhy, whose power was
henceforth unrivalled. Five hundred thousand Bedouins, allied in our
cause, formed but one camp, and overspread Mesopotamia like a cloud of
locusts.
While we remained in the neighbourhood of Bagdad, our allies pillaged
another caravan coming from Aleppo, laden with productions of European
manufacture; cloths, velvets, satins, amber, coral, &c.; and although
the Drayhy took no part in these spoliations, he was too well versed
in Bedouin habits to think of offering any opposition. The Pacha of
Bagdad demanded satisfaction, but obtained none; and perceiving that
to enforce justice would require an army of at least fifteen thousand
men, he renounced his claim, happy to continue in friendship with the
Bedouins at any sacrifice.
Sheik Ibrahim now saw his hopes realized beyond even his most sanguine
anticipations; but as long as any thing remained to be done, he would
allow himself no repose: crossing the Tigris, therefore, at Abou el
Ali, we continued our march, and entered Persia. Here, also, the
reputation of the Drayhy had preceded him, and the tribes of the
country came continually to fraternize with us; but in our vast plan of
operations, these partial alliances were insignificant,--we required
the co-operation of the great prince, chief of all the Persian tribes,
the Emir Sahid el Bokhrani, whose command extends to the frontiers of
India. The family of this prince has for many years reigned over the
errant tribes of Persia, and claims its descent from the kings Beni el
Abass, who conquered Spain, and whose descendants still call themselves
the Bokhrani. We learned that he was in a very distant province.
The Drayhy having convoked all the chiefs to a general council, it
was decided to traverse Persia, keeping as near as possible to the
sea-coast, notwithstanding the probable scarcity of water, in order to
avoid the mountains which intersect the interior of this country, and
to find pasturage. In the itinerary of a tribe, a plentiful supply of
grass is more important than water: the latter may be transported, but
nothing can remedy a deficiency of food for the cattle, on which the
very existence of the tribe itself depends.
This march occupied fifty-one days. During the whole time we
encountered no obstacle on the part of the inhabitants, but were
often seriously incommoded by the scarcity of water. On one of these
occasions, Sheik Ibrahim, having observed the nature of the soil and
the freshness of the grass, advised the Drayhy to dig for water. The
Bedouins of the country treated the attempt as madness, saying that no
water had ever been known in those parts, and that it was necessary
to send for it to a distance of six hours. But the Drayhy persevered:
“Sheik Ibrahim is a prophet,” said he, “and must be obeyed.”
Holes were accordingly dug in several places, and at the depth of four
feet excellent water was found. Seeing this happy result, the Bedouins
by acclamation proclaimed Sheik Ibrahim a true prophet, his discovery
a miracle, and, in the excess of their gratitude, had well nigh adored
him as a god.
After journeying several days among the mountains and valleys of the
Karman, we reached the deep and rapid river Karassan; and having
crossed it, proceeded in the direction of the coast, where the road
was less difficult. We made acquaintance with the Bedouins of the
Agiam Estan, who received us in a very friendly manner; and on the
forty-second day after entering Persia, we arrived at El Hendouan,
where one of their greatest tribes was encamped, commanded by Hebiek
el Mahdan. We hoped that our long pilgrimage was drawing towards its
close; but the sheik informed us that we were still distant nine long
days’ journeys from Merah Fames, the present residence of the Emir
Sahid, on the frontiers of India. He offered us guides to conduct us
thither, and described the points where it would be necessary to lay in
a provision of water; without which information, we should have been
exposed to great danger in this last expedition.
We despatched couriers before us, to give notice to the grand prince
of our approach, and of our pacific intentions. On the ninth day he
came to meet us, at the head of a formidable army. It did not at first
appear very clear whether this demonstration of strength was to do
us honour or to intimidate us. The Drayhy began to repent of having
ventured so far from his allies. However, he showed no symptom of fear,
but placing the women and the baggage behind the troops, he advanced
with the choicest of his cavalry, accompanied by his friend the Sheik
Saker,--the same to whom in the preceding year he had delegated the
command of the desert of Bassora, and who had negotiated all our
alliances there during our stay in Syria.
The prince soon satisfied them respecting his intentions; for,
detaching himself from this numerous host, he advanced with a small
train of horsemen to the middle of the plain which separated the two
armies; the Drayhy did the same; and the two chiefs, on meeting,
alighted and embraced with every expression of cordiality.
If I had not so frequently described the hospitality of the desert, I
should have much to say on the reception we experienced from the Emir
Sahid, and the three days’ festivities with which he welcomed us: but,
to avoid repetitions, I shall pass over this scene, only remarking,
that the Bedouins of Persia, more pacific than those of Arabia, entered
readily into our views, and fully understood the importance of the
commercial intercourse we were desirous of establishing with India.
This was all that it was needful to explain to them of the nature of
our enterprise. The emir promised us the co-operation of all the tribes
of Persia under his dominion, and offered his influence with those of
India, who hold him in high consideration, on account of the antiquity
of his race, and of his personal reputation for wisdom and generosity.
He entered into a distinct treaty with us, which was drawn up in the
following terms:--
“In the name of the clement and merciful God, I, Sahid, son of Bader,
son of Abdallah, son of Barakat, son of Ali, son of Bokhrani, of
blessed memory: I hereby make a declaration of having given my sacred
word to the powerful Drayhy Ebn Chahllan, to Sheik Ibrahim, and to
Abdallah el Katib. I declare myself their faithful ally; I accept all
the conditions which are specified in the general treaty now in their
hands. I engage to assist and support them in all their projects, and
to keep their secrets inviolably. Their enemies shall be my enemies;
their friends, my friends. I invoke the great Ali, the first of men,
and the well-beloved of God, to bear witness to my word.
“Health.”
(Signed and sealed.)
We remained six days encamped with the tribe of Sahid, and had thus
an opportunity of observing the difference between the customs of
these Bedouins and those of our provinces. The Persians are milder,
more sober, and more patient; but less brave, less generous, and less
respectful to the women: they have more religious prejudices, and
follow the precepts of the sect of Ali. Besides the lance, the gun, and
the sabre, they use the battle-axe.
Prince Sahid sent to the Drayhy two beautiful Persian mares, led by
two negroes: the latter, in return, made him a present of a black mare
of great value, of the race of Nedgdie, named Houban Neggir, and added
some ornaments for his wives.
We were encamped not far from Menouna, the last town of Persia, twenty
leagues from the frontiers of India, on the banks of a river which the
Bedouins call El Gitan.
On the seventh day we took leave of Sahid, and recommenced our march,
in order to reach Syria again before the heats of summer set in. We
marched rapidly, and without precautions, till one day, while we were
passing through the province of Karman, our beasts were carried off;
and the next day we were ourselves attacked by a powerful tribe,
commanded by the Emir Redaini, an imperious man, and jealous of his
authority, who constitutes himself the guardian of the caliphate
of Persia. These Bedouins, very superior in number, were as much
our inferiors in courage and tactics: our troops were vastly better
commanded. Our position was, however, extremely critical--we were lost
if the enemy gained the smallest advantage; for all the Bedouins of
the Karman would at once have surrounded us, and hemmed us in as with
a net, from which there would have been no possibility of escaping.
The necessity, then, of inspiring them with respect by a decisive
victory, which should at once cure them of any inclination to try
their strength with us for the future, was imperative; and the Drayhy
made the most skilful and best combined dispositions for ensuring the
triumph of courage over numbers: he displayed all the resources of his
military genius and long experience, and himself performed prodigies
of valour,--he had never commanded more calmly, nor fought more
impetuously: accordingly, the enemy was obliged to retreat, leaving us
at full liberty to pursue our homeward journey. The Drayhy, however,
considering that it would not be prudent to leave behind him a hostile
though beaten tribe, slackened his march, and sent a courier to the
Emir Sahid, to give him intelligence of what had passed. The messenger
returned in a few days, bringing a very friendly letter to the Drayhy,
enclosing a second, addressed in the following terms to Redaini:
“In the name of God the supreme: Be homage and respectful prayers ever
addressed to the greatest, the most powerful, the most honorable, the
wisest, and the handsomest of prophets! the bravest of the brave,
the greatest of the great, the caliph of caliphs, the master of the
sabre and of the red ruby, the converter of souls, the Iman Ali. This
letter is from Sahid el Bokhrani, the grandee of the two seas and of
the two Persias, to his brother the Emir Redaini, the son of Kronkiar.
We give you to know that our brother the Emir Drayhy Ebn Chahllan, of
the country of Bagdad and Damascus, is come from far to visit us and
form an alliance with us. He has marched on our land and eaten of our
bread; we have granted him our friendship, and moreover have entered
into particular engagements with him, from which great good and general
tranquillity will result. We desire that you do the same: take care
that you do not fail in this point, or you will lose our esteem, and
act in opposition to the will of God, and of the glorious Iman Ali.”
Here followed many citations from their holy books, the Giaffer el
Giameh, and the customary salutations.
We sent this letter to the Emir Redaini, who thereupon came to us,
accompanied by five hundred horsemen, all richly dressed in gold
brocades: their arms were mounted in chased silver, and the Damascus
blades of their sabres exquisitely worked. Some amicable explanations
having passed, Redaini copied with his own hand the particular treaty
of the Emir Sahid, and signed it: he then took coffee, but refused
to dine with us, the fanatics of the sect of Ali being prohibited
from eating either with Christians or Turks. To ratify his contract,
however, he swore upon bread and salt, and then embraced the Drayhy
with great protestations of fraternity. His tribe, called El Mehaziz,
numbers ten thousand tents. After taking leave of him, we continued
our journey by forced marches, advancing fifteen leagues a day without
halting. On reaching Bagdad, Sheik Ibrahim went into the city to take
up money; but the season requiring expedition, we lost as little time
as possible. In Mesopotamia we got news of the Wahabees. Ebn Sihoud
had given a very ill reception to his general, Hedal, after his
defeat, and had sworn to send a more powerful army than the former,
under his son, to take vengeance upon the Drayhy, and exterminate the
Bedouins of Syria; but after having obtained more correct information
respecting the resources and personal reputation of the Drayhy, he
changed his tone, and resolved to make an effort towards concluding
an alliance with him. Foreign events also gave an air of probability
to these rumours; for the Pacha of Egypt, Mehemet Ali, was preparing
an expedition to invade Arabia Petrea, and to take possession of the
riches of Mecca, which, for the present, were in the hands of Ebn
Sihoud. Either of these prospects was agreeable to our projects, which
would have been equally forwarded, whether his proposed alliance
took effect, or whether he was weakened by a foreign power. We were
continually meeting on our route tribes which had not yet signed the
treaty, but which eagerly took advantage of the opportunity of doing
so.[T] On arriving in Syria, we received a courier from the King of
the Wahabees, who brought us a little bit of paper, about three fingers
in breadth, and twice as long. They affect to use these diminutive
missives in contrast to the Turks, who write their firmans upon
large sheets of paper. The Arabian character takes so little room,
that in this small space was written a very long and sufficiently
imperious letter. It commenced with a sort of confession of faith, or
declaration, that God is one, universal, and without equal; then came
all the titles of the king whom God has invested with his sabre to
maintain his unity against the idolaters (the Christians) who affirm
the contrary. And it continued thus:--
“We, Abdallah, son of Abdel Aziz, son of Abdel Wahabs, son of Sihoud:
We give you to know, O son of Chahllan, (may the only adorable God
direct you in the right way!) that if you believe in God, you must obey
his slave Abdallah, to whom he has delegated his power, and come and
see us without fear. You shall be our well-beloved son; we will pardon
the past, and treat you as one of ourselves. But beware of obstinacy
and resistance to our call; for he who listens to us is reckoned in the
number of the inhabitants of paradise.
“Health.
“Signed,
El Manhoud Menalla Ebn Sihoud Abdallah.”
On the reception of this letter we held a great council of war; and
after having deliberately weighed all the perils of the journey against
the advantages of the alliance of Ebn Sihoud, the Drayhy determined to
comply with this authoritative invitation. Sheik Ibrahim having asked
me if I felt my courage equal to undertaking a visit to this fanatic, I
replied:
“I am well aware that my risk is greater than that of others, on
account of his hatred of all Christians; but I put my confidence in
God. I must die once, and having already made a sacrifice of my life, I
am willing to undertake any task likely to promote the entire execution
of the enterprise upon which I have entered.”
A desire of seeing this extraordinary man and his curious country also
excited my courage, and having earnestly recommended my poor mother
to the protection of M. Lascaris, if I should die in this expedition,
I set out with the Drayhy, his second son Sahdoun, his nephew, his
cousin, two of the principal chiefs, and five negroes, all mounted on
dromedaries. During his father’s absence, Saher was to command the
tribe, and conduct it to Horran, to meet the Drayhy, who proposed
returning by the Hegiaz. We made our first halt among the Bedouins
Beny Toulab, whose sole wealth consists in a few asses, and who live
by hunting gazelles and ostriches. They wear the skins of gazelles
coarsely sewed together, forming long robes with very large sleeves;
and the fur being outside, their appearance much resembles that of
wild beasts: I have never seen anything so savage as their aspect.
They showed us an ostrich hunt, in which I was greatly interested.
The female ostrich lays her eggs in the sand, and takes up her station
at some distance, looking fixedly upon them: she covers them as it
were, with her eyes, which she never turns from the nest. She remains
thus immovable for half the day, until the male comes to relieve her.
She then goes in search of food whilst her mate keeps guard in his
turn. The hunter, when he has discovered the eggs, constructs a sort
of shed with stones to conceal himself, and waits behind it for the
favourable moment. When the female is left alone, and the male at a
sufficient distance to prevent his taking alarm at the report, he draws
his trigger, runs to pick up the unfortunate bird who has received her
mortal wound, wipes away the blood, and replaces her in her former
position near the eggs; the male, on his return, approaches fearlessly
to assume his office of guard, when the hunter, who has remained in
ambuscade, shoots him also, and thus bears away a double prize. If the
male has had any cause of alarm, he runs with velocity to a distance;
and if pursued, defends himself by flinging stones behind him with
extraordinary force, to the extent of a musket-shot:--it is moreover
prudent to keep at a distance from him when in a state of irritation,
for his elevated stature and vigorous strength would render a close
encounter very perilous, especially to the hunter’s eyes. When the
season of the ostrich chase is over, the Bedouins carry the feathers to
Damascus, or even as far as Bagdad, for sale.