118 MISRA BEN KAEA. ch. v. 



and rest, and short excursions into the blazing sunshine to 

 botanise in the surrounding corn-fields, we did not resume 

 our journey until 3.20 p.m. The baggage train as usual 

 had gone on ahead ; and as the evening light was fading 

 fast, about 7.20 p.m., when we expected to be near our 

 night quarters, some inquiry from our escort revealed two 

 disagreeable facts : first, that we were still nearly two 

 hours' ride from Misra ben Kara ; and secondly, that the 

 baggage train had taken a different road. It is not sur- 

 prising that such intelligence coming suddenly on three 

 hungry and tired Englishmen, with the further prospect 

 of passing the night without food or shelter, led to a 

 vehement row, in which strong, if not intelligible language 

 was discharged at the head of the worthy Kaid El Hadj, 

 the commander of our escort. The whole affair had pro- 

 bably arisen from some misunderstanding ; but it was settled 

 by sending two of the escort to ride at full gallop after the 

 missing baggage train, while we jogged on sad and silent 

 towards our destined quarters for the night. Being pressed 

 for time, we had abstained from botanising by the way 

 from Ain Beida ; but at one place we stopped to gather 

 some extraordinarily fine specimens of Phelipcea lutea, 

 which caught our eyes in the failing light. This is the 

 king of the broomrape tribe ; the stems stood four or five 

 feet high, with sceptre-like spikes of large yellow flowers, 

 nearly two feet long, but it was quite too dark to ascertain 

 on what plant this curious parasite had attached itself. 



The stars shone down with marvellous brilliancy on the 

 desolate tract over which we rode in single file, always 

 ascending slightly, and the chain of the Great Atlas stood 

 out more definitely than we had yet seen it, when, at past 

 9 o'clock we reached Misra ben Kara, and found to our 

 relief that the baggage train had just preceded us. About 

 1 1 P.M. some food was prepared, and, being fairly tired, we 

 soon lay down for the night after a frugal meal. But 

 not to sleep, for the furious barking of the dogs from tlie 

 adjoining village, or douar, and the clatter kept up by 



