THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 457 
which is part of his title, or, as it were, his Chriftian name 
added to that of his family. This prince was, neverthelefs, 
but the Shekh of all the Arabs, to whom they paid a tribute 
to enable him to maintain his dignity, and a fufficient 
ftrength to keep up order and inforce his decrees in public 
matters. As for ceconomical ones, each tribe was under the 
government of its own Shekh, old aS fathers: of families 
in each clan. ; 
| abies fehidenos of this Arab prince, called for fhortnefs 
Wed:Ageeb, was at Gerri, a town in the very limits of the 
tropical rains} immediately upon the ferry which leads a- 
crofs the Nile tothe defert of Bahiouda, and the road to Don- 
gola and Egypt, joining the great defert of Selima. This 
was avery well-chofen fituation, it being a toll-gate, as it 
were, to catch/all the Arabs that had flocks, who, living 
within the rains in the country which was all of fat earth, 
were every year, about the month of May, obliged by the 
fly to pafs, as it were, in; review, to take up their abode in 
the fandy defert without the tropical rains. By the time 
fair weather returned in the fertile part of the country to 
the fouthward, and freed them from the fly, al] forts of ver- 
dure had grown up in great luxuriancy, while hunger fta- 
red them now in the face among the fands to the north- 
ward, where every thing eatable had been confumed by 
the multitudes of cattle that had taken refuge there. The 
Arab chief, with a large army of light, jbibeuudhes ed horfe, 
ftood in the way of their return to their paftures, till they 
had paid the uttermoft farthing of tribute, including arrears, 
ifany there were. Such was the ftate and government 
of the whole of this vaft country, from the frontiers of 
Vox. [V. 3M Egypt 
