THE ARABS CONTEMPT FOR CIVILISED LIFE. 109 



are fixed in local habitations, or engaged in the pursuits of indus- 

 try, and proud of being a ' dweller in tents,' which he can 

 pitch and transplant at pleasure, stigmatises them as ' dwellers 

 in houses made of clay.' His tent he regards as the nursery of 

 every noble quality, and the desert as the only residence woi-thy 

 of a man who aspires to be the unfettered master of his actions. 

 Vain of his birth and freedom, he divides the world into two 

 great bodies ; first, the Arabs, and secondly, ' Ajemi,' all that 

 are not Arabs ; and boasts of the four precious gifts that Allah 

 has bestowed on his nation : ' turbans instead of diadems, tents 

 in place of walls and bidwarks, swords instead of intrenchments, 

 and poems instead of written laws.' 



The deep attachment of the Arab to his native wilds is well 

 expressed in the celebrated song of Maysunah, the beautiful 

 wife of the Caliph Muawijah. The pomp and splendour of an 

 Imperial court could neither reconcile her to the luxuries of the 

 liarem nor make her forget the homely charms of her fatherland. 

 Her solitary hours were consumed in melancholy musings, and 

 her greatest delight was in singing the simple pleasures she had 

 enjoyed in the desert. The following translation gives of 

 course but a faint idea of the beauties of the original song, 

 the recital of which fills the Bedouin with delight : 



' Oh take these purple robes away, 

 Give back my cloak of camel's hair, 

 And bear me from this towering pile 

 To where the Black Tents flap i' the air. 

 The camel's colt with faltering tread, 

 The dog that bays at all but me, 

 Delight me more than ambling mules, 

 Than every art of minstrelsy.' 



Tradition reports that Muawijah overhearing the song, and 

 perhaps tired of the singer, sent her back to her beloved wilds ; 

 but we are not told whether in the desert she did not after all 

 sometimes regret the magnificence of Damascus. 



Among the best traits of the Bedouins' character, we must 

 cite their gentleness and generosity. Usually they are a mix- 

 ture of worldly cunning and great simplicity; fond of a jest, yet 

 solemn and dignified ; easily managed by a laugh and a soft 

 word, and pliable after passion, though madly revengeful after 

 injury. Though reckless when their passions are thoroughly 



