SOCIAL STATE OF THE ARABS. 321 



Hejazees, that the Almighty has exchided it from 

 the holy territory, it made its appearance in 1816. 

 At Yenibo, forty or fifty persons expired daily ; while 

 at Jidda the proportion was as high as two huritired 

 and fifty. The Arabs seldom employ medicine for 

 it ; but, though predestinarians, the common belief 

 in Europe is erroneous that supposes they use no 

 precautionary measures. Burckhardt states that 

 many of the townsmen fled to the desert ; alleging 

 as an excuse, that although the distemper was a 

 messenger from Heaven, sent to call them to a bet- 

 ter world, yet being conscious of their unworthiness, 

 and that they did not merit this special mark of grace, 

 they thought it more advisable to decline it for the 

 present, and make their escape from the town. The 

 Yembawees have a superstitious custom of leading 

 a she-camel through the town, covered with feathers, 

 balls, and all sorts of ornaments, after which it is 

 slaughtered, and the flesh throwTi to the dogs. By 

 this process they hope to get quit of the malady at 

 once, as they imagine that it has been concentrated 

 in the body of. the devoted animal. The cholera 

 morbus, now fearfully familiar to British ears, is no 

 stranger in Arabia. At Mecca, in the month of May, 

 1831, it raged with the greatest violence ; having car- 

 ried off" above 5500 persons in the course of twenty 

 or thirty days. Of 50,000 pilgrims assembled that 

 year nearly one-half are said to have perished. The 

 dead were buried in their clothes indiscriminately, 

 in large trenches dug for the purpose, Medina, 

 Yembo, and Suez were visited at the same time by 

 this dreadful epidemic. 



An Arab's property consists chiefly in his flocks ; 

 the profits of which enable him to procure the ne- 

 cessary provisions of wheat and barley, and occa- 

 sionally a new suit of clothes for his wife and 

 daughters. No family can exist without one camel 

 at least ; a man who has but ten is reckoned poor, — 

 thirty or forty place him in easy circumstances, and 



