The first evil is want of water. There is no river in Arabia: and the
small streams are often dried up by the heat.
The second evil is many locusts, which come in countless swarms, and
devour every green thing.
The third evil is the burning winds. When a traveller feels it coming, he
throws himself on the ground, covering his face with his cloak, lest the
hot sand should be blown up his nostrils. Sometimes men and horses are
choked by this sand.
These are the three great evils; but there is a still greater, the
religion of Mahomed: for this injures the soul; the other evils only hurt
the body.