Say, thou Antelope in beauty, Since permitted to return, Say, what is a lo ve r’s duty, Who with ardent fire doth burn. Sympathize with him who loves you, Crown o f a ll my hopes and joys, Tis your constant swain approves you, His Gazel all his soul employs. Great numbers o f gazels are found in a ll those extensive plains situated at the foot o f the Atlas mountains; in those o fF ru g a , south o f Marocco, after descending the Atlas, I have seen a hundred to g e th e r ; they also abound in the plains o f Sheshawa near A nek Jimmel. W ild as the hare, and more fleet than the Barbary courser, they are seen bounding ove r the plains in large numbers. T h e antelope, however, soon fatigues, so that the horses o f the Arabs gain on it, and the dogs are enabled fina lly to come u p with i t ; it is hunted rather for the meat, which is similar to venison, than for actual sport, the Arabs having little desire to hunt merely for amusement. T h e y k ill and cut the throats o f as many animals as th e y can procure. T h e y often hunt the gazel with the (slogie) African greyhound, a p e cu lia rly fine breed o f which is produced in the province o f Suse. T h e Arabs and Moors whilst hunting the antelope, often throw (zerwata) thick sticks about two feet long at their legs, to break them, and thereby incapacitate them from ru n n in g : a cruel device, at which the natural predilection for this delicate and beautiful animal recoils. E l Horreh.— This, as its name implies,* is reckoned among the Arabs the prince o f animals, and the emblem o f cleanliness. It is an inhabitant o f Sahara and its confines, and is not found north o f the river Suse. It is somewhat similar to the gazel in its form and size; the colour o f its back and head is o f a light red, inclining to that o f a fawn ; the b e lly is o f a beautiful and delicate white, insomuch that its brilliancy aflects the eyes in a similar manner to the sensation produced in them by looking stedfastly at fine scarlet. This animal, according to the tradition o f the Arabs, never lies down, lest it should deface the colour o f its be lly, o f the beauty o f which it appears to be conscious. The stone called in Europe bizoar stone,■f is produced b y the horreh, but whether it be a concretion formed in its stomach, or an egg, or the teticle, is probably not accurately ascertained. T he Bide el horreh, or egg o f the horreh, signifies also the testicle o f the animal, and I am inclined to think it is either the testicle, o r a peculiar concretion formed in its stomach, all those which I ha ve seen being nearly o f the same size and form, similar to a pigeon’s egg. This stone is scraped and taken as an antidote against poison. Some whimsical people ca rry it about with them, taking it frequently in tea. From this rare and beautiful animal’s being an emblem o f p urity, its skin (Jild el Horreh) is held in great estimation b y the Bashaws, and men of rank, who prefer it to e v e ry other substance, to prostrate themselves upon at prayers. T he * Horreh signifies any thing pure and free; thus a free-born man, (having a handsome person and virtuous mind,) is called Rajel Horreh; a horse of high breed is called Aoud el Horreh; it is also opposed to Abd, which signifies a slave. f Possibly bizoar may be a corruption of Bide el Horreh.
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