THE HORSE AND HIS RIDER. 195 



standard. Then the prophet blessed these docile mares, 

 and adorned their eyelids with kohl, after the manner 

 of the women in the East ; hence they were called 

 Kohlani, which means blackened. They were ridden 

 from that time forth by the prophet himself, and his 

 companions, Ali, Omar, Abubekr, and Hassan, and 

 from them are descended all the noble steeds of 

 Arabia. 



The great excellence of the Arab horse is owing 

 partly to the extreme and undeviating care of the 

 Bedouins to keep up the purity of the blood; and 

 partly to the friendly and familiar treatment the ani- 

 mal receives in its master's tent, where it is the pet of 

 his children, and a watchful observer of all his do- 

 mestic concerns. The Bedouin's mare (they never 

 ride horses) displays all the sagacity and fidelity of 

 th'e dog ; she will never suffer her sleeping master 

 to be suprised by his foes without a warning. It 

 is, therefore, no wonder that to obtain Arab mares, 

 by purchase, is a matter of extreme difficulty. The 

 people of the Desert themselves often give as much as 

 200 for a celebrated mare, not to be sold to 

 strangers. The sum of 500 has even been given ; 

 which, considering the value of money in Arabia and 

 Syria, is enormous. Buckhardt mention a sheikh, 

 who had a mare of great celebrity, for the half -share 



