Pel VMS Wa Rha S Or atk DE SHR T 
el Homra the horizon lies around the 
traveler in one unbroken line—one infi- 
nite plain as far as the eye can see. 
In the wilderness we had left behind 
us the ever-varying mountains rested the 
eye, and the mind instinctively imagined 
green fields and trees somewhere beyond 
the ridges. Here in the hamada, however, 
the desert, naked and hopeless in its deso- 
lation, lies ever before one. By day or 
by night, nothing interrupts the stillness 
of death save the mournful notes of the 
wind sighing among the stones. The end- 
less disk of red rock over which the cara- 
van slowly marches is closed in by the 
arch of the sky, steel-blue to the very edge 
of the horizon. And in this sky is set 
“a tabernacle for the sun, which is as a 
bridegroom coming out of his chamber, 
and rejoicing as a strong man to run a 
race. His going forth is from the end 
of the heaven and his circuit unto the 
ends of it, and there is nothing hid from 
the heat thereof.” Only dawn and sun- 
set paint earth and sky with colors more 
glorious than pen can describe. 
The wonderful clearness of sun, 
moon, and stars, as they move through 
the silent heavens; the divine beauty of 
morning and evening—all bear the sign 
of eternity, before which man’s wildest 
imaginations fall into insignificance. This 
is, indeed, the Garden of Allah; not of 
the bountiful God who is worshiped with 
harmonious chants of love in the soft. 
incense-laden atmosphere of a cathedral, 
but the Jehovah of Israel, a consuming 
fire, on whom no man can look and live. 
A little speck on the endless plain, the 
caravan advances, pressing forward in 
anxiety to leave this abode of death, 
where shouts and laughter cease and the 
human voice is drowned in the heavy 
stillness. 
SINGING MOUNTAINS 
The highest and most prominent point 
in the range is a mountain called Jetko, 
a dark and forbidding rock frowning 
over Bilma and the southern end of the 
oasis. This mountain warns the inhabit- 
ants of the approaching arrival of a cara- 
van, for when it “sings” the men know 
fiatedscaravan is close at hand. Lhe 
noise is produced by the blowing of the 
LO5v 
wind from a certain direction through 
the crevices of the tom cock | it was 
clearly heard by the French officers one 
night. Commandant Gadel says, in his 
report: “On the 6th of October, in the 
morning, the old Liman came to tell me 
that the mountain had spoken. On the 
8th of October, at 10 in the morning, the 
first Asbin caravan arrived. It consisted 
of 4,851 camels and 857 men. The moun- 
tain had not lied.” * 
Awaiting a scientific explanation, we 
can only note these facts. The desert is 
still full of mysteries. Major Djamy 
Bey told us that while in the neighbor- 
hood of Ghat, a Tuareg one day drew his 
attention to some large clouds which ap- 
peared most unusually on the horizon. 
The Tuareg assured the Bey that these 
clouds only showed when there was a 
large caravan on the road from Ganet, 
and two days later a special messenger 
brought the intelligence that a French 
expedition had arrived at Ganet! By 
similar clouds the Tuaregs maintained 
that they could foretell the arrival of 
every large caravan long before they had 
any other definite news of it. The moun- 
tain Jetko sang even while I was with 
the French at Bilma. And the caravan 
came. 
One morning we noticed far out on 
the west, on the round, brilliant backs of 
the sand dunes, long dark blots. Quite 
imperceptibly they increased in size and 
drew nearer, like the great shadow of a 
cloud. It was an Asbin caravan of over 
8,000 camels and 1,000 men. The arrival 
of these caravans is naturally the most 
important event of the year to the people 
of the oasis. The Asbinawas bring millet 
and grass from Air, wood for camel sad- 
dles, Manchester cloth, Hausa robes, and 
all the luxuries which can be found in 
the Kano market. Men, women, and 
children arrive from all the villages to 
buy their provisions for the year, which 
the Tuaregs give them in exchange for 
salt and dates. Formerly the Asbinawas 
forbade the inhabitants to cultivate mil- 
let, in order to force them to work the 
saltings and grow dates. 
* Gadel, “Notes sur Bilma et les oasis en- 
vironnantes,” Revue Coloniale, Juin 1907. 
