CIVIL HISTORY AND 



provision of wheat and barley, and return after the 

 first rains into the interior of the Desert. They are 

 divided into four principal clans, the Wold Ali, the 

 El Hessenne, the El Rawalla, or more properly El 

 Jelas, and the El Besher ; and these again are sepa- 

 rated into numerous inferior bodies. The Sheik of 

 the Wold Ali occupies the first rank among their 

 chiefs, and is therefore styled Abu el Aeneze, or the 

 Father of the Aenezes. The Rawalla generally 

 occupy the desert from Gebel Shammar towards Jof ; 

 but they frequently encamp beyond the Tigris and 

 the Euphrates. In point of military strength they 

 are formidable, possessing more horses than any of 

 the Aenezes. The El Besher are the most nume- 

 rous of these grand divisions, and have their resi- 

 dence chiefly in Nejed. 



To ascertain the population of each of the different 

 tribes is rendered very difficult, from a prejudice 

 which forbids them to count the horsemen ; as they 

 believe, like the Eastern merchants, that whoever 

 knows the exact amount of his wealth may soon 

 expect to lose part of it. Exclusive of those in 

 Nejed, Burckhardt reckons their forces at about 

 10,000 cavalry, and perhaps 90,000 or 100,000 ca- 

 mel-riders ; and thinks that the whole northern Ae- 

 neze nation may be estimated at from 300,000 to 

 350,000 souls, spread over a country of at least 40,000 

 square miles. Most, though not all, of the great Ae- 

 neze tribes are entitled to passage-money from the 

 Syrian caravans. The Hessenne take a yearly surra, 

 or tribute of fifty purses (about 1000) ; the Wold 

 Ali levy to the same amount ; while the Fedaan, one 

 of the strongest of these clans, receive nothing in 

 the way of annual impost from the pilgrims. 



