THE HORSE AND HIS RIDER. 189 



out of the tent and gave the alarm ; then mounting 

 his brother's mare, and accompanied by some of his 

 tribe, he pursued the robber for four hours. The 

 brother's mare was of the same stock as Jabal's, but 

 was not equal to her; nevertheless, she outstripped 

 those of all the other pursuers, and was even on the 

 point of overtaking the robber, when Jabal shouted to 

 him, " Pinch her right ear, and give her a touch of 

 the heel." Gafar did so, and away went the mare 

 like lightning, speedily rendering all further pur- 

 suit hopeless. The pinch in the ear and the touch 

 with the heel, were the secret signs by which Jabal had 

 been used to urge the mare to her utmost speed. 

 Every Bedouin trains the animal he rides, to obey 

 some sign of this kind, to which he has recourse only 

 on urgent occasions, and which he makes a close se- 

 cret, not to be divulged even to his son. Jabal's 

 comrades were amazed and indignant at his strange 

 conduct ; " O thou father of a jackass ! " they cried, 

 " thou hast helped the thief to rob thee of thy jewel !" 

 But he silenced their upbraidings, by saying, " I 

 would rather lose her than sully her reputation. 

 Would you have me suffer it to be said among the 

 tribes, that another mare had proved fleeter than 

 mine ? I have at least this comfort left me, that I 

 can say she never met with her match." 



The trick of jockeys, as above-mentioned, is not 

 peculiar to the desert ; we trace it even in the Western 



