devoid of any kind of vegetation. The only object
visible to break the dreary monotony of the landscape
was a Tawarek tomb.
Now the Tawareks, in accordance with an ancient
custom among them, erect at each end of their
graves a slab of wood or stone, with the name of the
deceased cut or painted in the characters of their
language upon the slab at the head. These slabs
are known as Shouahed or ‘witnesses.’
The eyes of the elder brother fell upon the two
wooden slabs which formed the * witnesses' of the
Tawarek’s grave, and, thinking that they would make
good fuel, he directed his brother to fetch them.
The young man obeyed, and seizing one of the
slabs shook it violently to loosen it in the ground.
He soon desisted, however, from his efforts, for at
each shake which he gave to it there arose from the
grave the most plaintive and heartrending sigh
imaginable.
Thoroughly scared at this unaccountable sound,
he returned to his brother, and telling him of what
had happened, declared that he was too frightened
to make another attempt. ,
His brother laughed at him for his fears, told
him to stay and prepare the sheep, and that he
himself would go to fetch the wood.
As in his brother’s case, the same heartrending
sigh arose from the tomb when he attempted to
loosen the slab. But he was not to be easily
daunted.
i Sigh away,’ he responded cheerfully to the
lugubrious sounds which proceeded from the grave.
‘This slab is of no use to you. I want it to cook
my dinner, and I mean to have it.’
With a vigorous tug he wrenched it up, and
throwing it over his shoulder, came back in triumph
to his brother. Finding him lying fast asleep, he
left him where he lay and proceeded to light the fire
and cook the supper, so as to be ready for his
awakening.
The sheep was roasted and ready, and the cook
was about to awake his brother to join him in the
meal, when suddenly the form of the dead Tawarek
arose from his grave, and coming to where the two
brothers were stationed, seated himself by the fire
between them, and, on the ground that he had
supplied the means for cooking the sheep, put
forward a claim to a share in the food. As this
seemed to be but reasonable, the elder brother
admitted the force of his argument, and commenced
to divide the carcase of the sheep into three portions
instead of the two which he had originally intended.
‘ Why are you cutting that sheep into three ?
demanded the corpse.
i Because there are three of us—you, I, and my
brother.’
‘ No; there are only two. Your brother is dead.’
‘ No ; he is merely asleep.’
‘ I tell you he is dead.’
‘ Nonsense; I tell you he is asleep.’
The dispute thus begun continued until both
parties, becoming heated in the debate, turned from
argument to insult, and began upbraiding each other
in> the strongest terms.