HISTORY OF THE WAHABEES. 279 



owing to the scarcity of herbage. On his arrival 

 at Mecca ]ie ingratiated himself with the inhabit- 

 ants, by distributing presents, and ordering the 

 mosques to be repaired. His first interviews with 

 Ghaleb were on friendly terms, but he soon became 

 cool in his demojistrations of amity. Although both 

 had sworn on the Koran never to attempt any thing 

 contrary to the interest, safety, or life of each other, 

 these vows were not considered binding longer than 

 it was convenient to keep them. Both were equally 

 suspicious, and accused each other of insidious 

 machinations. It now became the principal object 

 of the Egyptian pasha to arrest and imprison his 

 rival; — an enterprise of no small difficulty, con- 

 sidering the sheriff's influence over the neighbour- 

 ing Arabs, and the strength of the castle where he 

 resided, which was well supplied with provisions, 

 and defended by a garrison of 800 men. This feat 

 was at length accomplished by a stratagem ; Ghaleb 

 was seized, while paying a visit of ceremony to 

 Toussoun, by a detachment of soldiers, who lay con- 

 cealed in the apartments adjoining the court-yard of 

 the house which he had just entered. After a short 

 captivity at Mecca, he was conveyed by way of Cos- 

 seir to Cairo, where he was joined by his wives and 

 a retinue of eunuchs and slaves ; but he died of the 

 plague in the summer of 1816 at Salonica, the place 

 which the Porte had assigned for his residence. 

 The fate of this chief spread terror among all his 

 partisans, and caused a revolution in the whole 

 political affairs of the country. Yahia, a distant 

 relation of his, and formerly an antagonist, was ap- 

 pointed governor of the city, with a monthly stipend 

 from the pasha. 



Among the hostile tribes near Mecca, none had 

 displayed a more resolute opposition than the Be- 

 goum Arabs who inhabited Taraba, where most of 

 Ghaleb's troops had taken refuge ; and which thus 

 became a point of union for all the southern Waha- 



