Ivi INTRODUCTION. 



the bafha, at the defire of the French merchants, who kept it 

 for a relict. I and my horfe fwam feparately afhore ; at a 

 fmall diftance from thence was a caphar*, or turnpike, to 

 which, when I came to dry myfelf, the man told me, that 

 the place where I had crofled was the remains of a Hone 

 bridge now entirely carried away ; where I had firft enter- 

 ed was one of the wings of the bridge, from which I had 

 fallen into the fpace the firft arch occupied, one of the 

 deepeft parts of the river ; that the people who had mif- 

 guided me were an infamous fet of banditti, and that I 

 might be thankful on many accounts that I had made fuch 

 an efcape from them, and was now on the oppofite fide. I 

 then prevailed on the caphar-man to fhew my fervants the 

 right ford. 



From HafTia we proceeded with our conductor to Caria- 

 teen, where there is an immenfe fpring of fine water, which 

 overflows into a large pool. Here, to our great furprife, we 

 found about two thoufand of the Annecy encamped, who 

 were quarrelling with Haffan our old friend, the kelp-mer- 

 chant. This was nothing to us ; the quarrel between the 

 Mowalli and Annecy had it feems been made up ; for an 

 old man from each tribe on horfeback accompanied us to 

 Palmyra : the tribes gave us camels for more commodious 

 travelling, and we paffed the deiert between Cariateen and 

 Palmyra in a day and two nights, going conilantly without 

 fleeping. 



Just 



* It is a poll where a party of men are kept to receive a contribution, for maintaining the 

 fecurity of the roads, from all paffengers. 



