CH. XXV.] Premature Decay. 199 



among the pure Bedouins ; and when tliey see it in 

 others they look upon it with contemptuous pity as 

 a deformity. 



As younoj men, the Bedouins are often o-ood- 

 looking, with bright eyes, a pleasant smile, and 

 very white teeth ; but after the age of thirty the 

 habit of constantly frowning, to protect the eyes 

 from the glare of the sun, gives their faces a fierce 

 expression, often quite at variance with their real 

 character. Hard training, too, and insufficient food 

 have generally by that time pinched and Avithered 

 their cheeks, and the sun has turned their skin 

 to an almost Indian l)lackness. At forty their 

 beards turn grey, and at fifty they are old men. I 

 doubt if more than a very few of them roach the 

 age of sixty. 



The reason for this premature decay must l)c 

 looked for in their way of life. From childhood up, 

 they have been in hard training, eating 1)ut once a 

 day, and then sparingly, and sleeping on the ground. 

 This ensures them high health and a full enjoyment 

 of all their faculties, at the time, but uses the body 

 rapidly ; and a certain " staleness " follows, which 

 the Bedouins acknowledge by withdrawing early 

 from all unnecessary exertion. There is little work 

 in the desert for men which needs to be done ; and, 

 once the love of enterprise and excitement over, 

 there is no reason for any but the poorest to go far 

 from his tent.* Political intrigue or a love of 



* Sport is seldom a sufficient inducement. None but the cliildron 



