THE TROGLODYTES OF SOUTHERN TUNISIA 
sustain the life of its inhabitants. The 
rest is bought at the markets of Gabes, 
Zarzis, and Djerba. 
On my arrival at Médenine, I went im- 
mediately to see about hiring a cart and 
horse to take me to Foum Tatahouine. 
Officers at Gabes had given me the ad- 
dress of Monsieur Courtier, a contractor, 
who usually has a number of spare ani- 
mals. On going there I found that four 
of his horses were laid up with sprains or 
bad cuts and the other two available ani- 
mals in town were also hurt. Monsieur 
E. Michal, a French officer of the “Af- 
faires Indigenes” and an old friend of 
mine, sent word to the Caid of Médenine 
that I wanted to push on to Foum Tata- 
houine to visit the cadi, and asked if the 
caid knew of any horse or mule that I 
could hire. An answer came back very 
quickly that “The caid had a very strong 
fast mule that he would lend me.” So 
after lunch up came the mule and Mon- 
sieur Courtier’s small two-wheeled cart 
and Ali, the driver. About 1 o'clock off 
we started. The landscape had been wild 
between Gabes and Médenine, but it grew 
wilder the nearer we approached the 
curious mountain ranges or table-lands, 
varying in height from 400 to 750 meters. 
Between Médenine and Foum ‘Tata- 
houine, a distance of 52 kilometers (32% 
English miles), not a house or village is 
to be seen. The government has built a 
“bordj” at “Bir-El-Ahmeur,’ which 
means the “red well,” about half way be- 
tween the two towns. 
One finds military bordj at intervals 
over the country ; they are military “‘cara- 
vansaries,’ where officers, soldiers, and 
officials can find water and_ shelter. 
There are always ample water and one 
or two large rooms for officers, a room 
for soldiers taken ill or wounded on the 
march, a series of watering troughs, 
and a house or room for the Arab guar- 
dian and his family. A high wall of sub- 
stantial masonry surrounds this military 
camp, usually built in the form of a 
square, with a large courtyard in the 
center. There are loopholes in the walls 
for shooting and strong gates, so that 
this miniature fortress could withstand a 
siege. 
823 
Only after riding long distances on 
horse or camel through arid plains or 
sandy deserts without shade can one ap- 
preciate the sight of a hideously ugly 
bordj, for somewhere around its four 
high walls can be found welcome shade, 
where you can throw yourself down and 
rest. You will not mind your horse or 
mule carefully picking its way over your 
prostrate body, so that it, too, can be in 
the shade. 
Almost before the bordj came in sight 
horses and mules would prick up their 
ears and want to push eagerly forward, 
tired as they were, for the water of the 
“Red Well” is not brackish, and they 
can drink their fill, Through nine kilo- 
meters of deep sand, where the wheels 
sank in half way up to the hubs, Ali and 
I had to walk. We saw curious effects 
of mirage of mountains, lakes, and green 
oases, where we knew only sandy deserts 
existed. A small white maribout glis- 
tened away off to the left. It seemed 
as if we would never get there. Then 
came a turn and 28 kilometers of excel- 
lent macadamized road to Foum Tata- 
houine. 
As we draw nearer, two specks stand 
out against the white road, which grow 
into horsemen riding at full speed—the 
cadi and caliph coming to meet me— 
the first mounted on a superb dark gray 
stallion 2nd the other on a white, with 
its tail, mane, and hoofs stained red with 
henna. My welcome was a warm one 
and very sincere. A house had been pre- 
pared for my arrival and furnished with 
European furniture—tables, bureaus, 
sofas, chairs, looking-glasses, and a 
modern metal bedstead, mattresses, and 
native woolen blankets. The house was 
built of stone, with very thick walls, so 
as to be cool in summer. It belonged to 
the cadi and was situated on a hill over- 
looking the pretty little town of Foum 
Tatahouine, and was not two minutes’ 
walk from the cadi’s own house and 
his law court. The cadi’s full name is 
Mohammed E's-Seghir-Cadi du Djebel- 
El-Abiodh, which means “Cadi of the 
White Mountain” (see picture, page 
831). 
The mountain back of Tatahouine con- 
