had spread upon the ground for our seats ; the women to examine
our dress more minutely, and the men to handle our sabres and
fire-arms. . i
. The white linen of which our turbans and under garments were
composed excited the greatest admiration in the former, while our
double-barrelled guns, and pocket-pistols with stop-locks, were the
objects of attraction to the latter. In a very short time the reserve
of both, sexes would begin to wear away very rapidly, and the
whole family of our host would crowd round us indiscriminately
each trying to be heard above the other : one question after another
poured in upon us from all sides,, and either nobody waited for an
answer, or the answer was given by half a dozen of the family
at once, each expressing a different opinion: from that of his neighbour.
At length, when no satisfactoryconclusion.. could. 1»! formed
upon the, subject of their inquiry, they would wait to have the quek:
tion formally answered .by ourselves*; .and the real use of every
object which excited «their, curiosity was generally so different from
all those which they, had assigned to it, that the whole party, then
waiting in silent expectation for .the result, would burst out all at
once into the loudest exclamations of surprise, and. sometimes into
fits of laughter, which laid them rolling on the ground, and left
them scarcely strength to rise when we got up to take our leave.
Among the numerous, objects of attraction, our, compass, telescopes,
and watches, excited universal admiration; and the reason
why the hands of the latter should move round of themselves, and
why the needle of the compass should always turn to the northward;
must have been canVassed among them for many months
afterwards. ,
f t Why a man or a camel could be seen; distinctly through a tube,
when they could scarcely be* seen, at all, at the same distance, without,
it, will afford equal matter: for > speculation: and the next European,
who may visit the tents of/bur friends will probably hear an
account of these wonders so much« disfigured by misrepresentation,
and so much exaggerated by the enthusiasm of Arab fancy, as will
lead him to doubt whetherithey.ever saw what they are describing,
or to believe that they are telling him some whimsical story which
has no better foundation than those of the Hundred and one Nights
or the description of a Mahommedan Paradise.
We found the men of Zaffran; active, healthy, and well made, and
the women pretty and well-behaved ;■ the dress of the former consists
merely of a coarse baracan, with a red cap, and sandals of camel’s
hide.
The women wore a loose cotton shirt under the baracan, and
instead of the sandals were furnished with laced boots. They had
as usual a profusion of rude ornaments, and charms to avert the evil
eye, and were not at all anxious to keep their faces veiled or to avoid
the society of strangers. A small looking-glass and a few strings of
beads were received with delight by the fairer part of this community,
and a knife, with a few flints, and some powder, were
accepted very thankfully by the men.
Our Chaous, who sometimes attended on these occasions, never
omitted an opportunity of displaying his own knowledge, and took