NUMBERS OF THE CAMEL. 165 



ler. I borrow from the often quoted journal the 

 following description of one of these quarrels : 

 " The Arabs were almost constantly at logger- 

 heads among themselves. Their wars were 

 chiefly of words, and it is incredible what a 

 power of lungs they will exhibit on a question 

 of two pence. While with them, we had among 

 our own Bedouins, besides several minor and 

 more informal set-tos and one general melee in 

 which the belligerents did little but push each 

 other about, one regular duello, dans les formes, 

 with swords. The dispute was about furnishing 

 camels for the Hawajees, but I did not inquire 

 into the precise point of difference. Why should 

 I pester myself with the quarrels of Ethnicks ? 

 Nevertheless, I felt a good deal of interest in the 

 result. I shall tell you why. One of the com- 

 batants had a short-bladed sword, true Damas- 

 cus, with a chased silver hilt, which I had in 

 vain tempted him to sell. But no, it had been 

 his father's, and his father's, and so on back to 

 Adnan, from whom all Bedouins are descended. 

 I hoped that, in a certain event, his adminis- 

 trator would be less scrupulous. The champi- 

 ons were placed in the centre of a ring of Arabs, 

 and when all was ready, ' winked and held out 

 their cold iron.' After a little preliminary flour- 

 ishing, they went at their ^ood work in earnest. 

 They poked, they cut, they thrust, and they 



