36o HORSE-SHOES AND HORSE-SHOEING. 



in a tent set apart from the tribe, called the ' master's 

 douar ;' he pays no contributions, and when grain is 

 bought, he gets a share without payment; neither is he 

 called upon to offer shelter to any one ; so that he is 

 exempted from what in many cases is imposed upon all — 

 hospitality. The constant toil demanded by his calling, 

 the unavoidable accidents to which he is liable through 

 the urgent wants of his brethren night and day, and the 

 sleepless nights he has to undergo, entitle him to certain 

 gifts called ' master's dues.' 



On their return from the purchase of grain, every 

 tent makes him an allowance of wheat and barley, and a 

 quantity of butter. In the spring he gets the fleece of a 

 ewe ; and if a camel is killed for eating, he gets the part 

 between the withers and tail. When dividing plunder, 

 no matter whether or not he has taken part in the 

 expedition, he gets his share, usually a sheep or a 

 camel, and this is called the horseman's ewe. The most 

 important privilege accorded to him, howev^er, and which 

 shows more than anything else the high esteem in which 

 his art is held, is the gift of life on the field of battle. 

 If a farrier is on horseback, with arms in his hands, he is 

 as liable to be killed as any other horseman ; but if he 

 dismounts, kneels down, and imitates with the two corners 

 of his burnous the movements of his bellows, he will be 

 spared. This is only, however, when he has led an in- 

 oflfensive life, and followed his art. 'A "lange" (one 

 share of the plunder) is given to the farrier of the tribe, 

 for he contributes his skill and labour to the success of 

 the enterprise. To kill a farrier is deemed infamous. It 

 is a deed that will recoil upon the guilty tribe, who will 



