214 MB. n. M. BEDHEAD ON THE PLORA OT SINAl. 



a number of plants hitherto unseen by us : conspicuous amongst 

 these are large tufts of Scopolia Bouiana^ with handsome, veined, 

 purple flowers resembling a Petunia, and fleshy strong-smelling 

 leaves ; numerous shrubs with a silvery stem, and thinly-scattered, 

 conjugate, fleshy leaves, and white flowers, ZygopTiyllum album ; a 

 Reseda^ I think identical with the European B. odorata^ but very 

 dwarf, and, like it, deliciously fragrant ; another Beseda, with its 

 lower leaves always red (_B. undatd) ; a curious yellow and brown- 

 flowered Cleome (C. ornithopodioides), so viscid that the sand ad- 

 heres to it even when dry in the herbarium (as is also the case 

 with Scopolia) ; a noble yellow-flowered Astragalus [?A. tomen- 

 tosus^ ; large quantities of Bicotia, Mathiola^ and Malcomia, a 

 sweet-smeUing AntTiemis tomentosa, the Zilla, here most luxuriant, 

 and many bushes of a curious, twiggy, almost leafless plant, bear- 

 ing spikes of insignificant yellowish flowers, and small white 

 pearly berries, Ochradentcs haccattcs ; this is a favourite food oi 

 the camels, who lose no opportunity of nibbling at the uninvitmg, 

 juiceless stems. The place of grass is here supplied by the pretty 

 AspJiodelus fistulosus^ at this time in full bloom. Another genus 

 now made its appearance, and we saw one or another of the three 

 prevailing species all the way through the Desert hence to the 

 frontier of Palestine, but especially in the Desert of Nuhkl ; this 

 is Fagonia — dwarf, prickly-leaved plants, with pink flowers ; one, 

 the commonest species, F. cistoides, in many places spreads so as 

 to form dense masses several yards round, and not above three or 

 four inches high. 



At the rocky staircase, called Niikb Buderah, by which we 

 ascend to the higher region of the peninsula, I found the pretty 

 little trailing, yellow-flowered ZggophyUum simplex. The family 

 Zygophyllacese seems to occupy here the place of Crassulacese 

 in more northern latitudes. 



In Wady Magarah and Wady Ginneh the same plants occurred, 

 with the addition of Heliotropium supinum. Here is the encamp- 

 ment of the " King of Sinai," Major Macdonald, to whose intro- 

 duction we were indebted for the hospitality of his representa- 

 tive, Mr. McNeill, the Major being then at Alexandria. Here 

 we dined on Ibex soup, Ibex cutlets, stewed Ibex, and a deli- 

 cious salad, with tomatoes grown in the small enclosed garden : 

 I thought the flesh of the Ibex excellent, something between lamb 

 and veal, and very tender. A young one of this species {Gopra 

 sinaitica) follows Mr. McNeill, jun., about like a dog. There were 

 several heads of the animal here, with noble recurved and ringed 





