DESERT JOURNEYS. 335 



succeed in bringing one down, he will not fail to be struck by their 

 colouring and marking, which is as remarkable as their behaviour. 

 The sand-coloured upper surface, shading sometimes into gray, 

 sometimes towards bright yellow, is broken and adorned by broad 

 bands, narrower bars, delicate lines, by dots, spots, points, streaks, 

 and blurs, so that one might fancy at first sight that birds so 

 marked must be conspicuous from a distance. But all this colour- 

 medley is simply the most precise copy of the ground ; every dark 

 and light spot, every little stone, every grain of sand seems to have 

 its counterpart on the plumage. It is no wonder then that the 

 earth can, as it were, make the bird part of itself, and secure its 

 safety, which is further assured by the creature's strong wings, 

 which are capable of incomparably swift flight. And so it is that 

 the poetic feeling of the Arabs has idealized these sand-grouse in 

 luxuriant fancy and flowery words, for their beauty fascinates the 

 eye, and their marvellous swiftness awakens longing in the heart 

 of mortals who are bound to the earth. 



All other desert animals display characters like the two which 

 we have described. Thus there is a lynx, the caracal, leaner and 

 lanker, with longer ears and larger eyes than the rest of his race, 

 moreover not striped nor spotted, but sand-coloured all except his 

 black ear-tips, eye-stripes, and lip-spots. His hue varies slightly, 

 being lighter or darker, and with more or less red, according to the 

 locality in which he lives. There is also a desert fox, the fenec, 

 the dwarf of the dog family, with dun-yellow fur, and extra- 

 ordinarily large ears. The desert also harbours a small rodent, the 

 so-called jumping-mouse, the jerboa: he suggests a miniature kan- 

 garoo, and has exceedingly long hind-legs, diminutive fore-legs, and 

 a tail longer than the body with hairs in two rows. He is more 

 harmless and good-natured, but also swifter and more agile than any 

 other rodent. 



The birds, the reptiles, and even the insects show the same 

 stamp, though form and colouring may vary greatly. When 

 any other colour besides sandy-yellow becomes prominent, if hair, 

 feather, or scale be marked with black or white, ashy-gray or 

 brown, red or blue, such decorations occur only in places where 



