THE COUNTRY OF THE ANT MEN 



373 



sand and nearly always dry on the sur- 

 face, the conditions are not favorable 

 for the germination of date seeds. Con- 

 sequently one misses the seedling palms 

 bearing fruits of every description, with 

 which the neglected gardens and waste 

 places in other oases are crowded. This 

 explains the fact that there are appar- 

 ently no varieties of dates peculiar to the 

 Oued Souf. Even offshoots are pro- 

 duced sparingly, and the natives must 

 perforce journey to distant oases in 

 search of them. 



The dates grown in the sunken gar- 

 dens of the Souf are highly reputed 

 throughout the Sahara, being considered 

 especially superior in sweetness and in 

 keeping quality. This is doubtless due 

 to the peculiar conditions under which 

 they ripen, the sandy sides of the basins 

 acting as reflectors, which increase the 

 direct heat and light of the sun's rays. 

 There being no surface moisture, the 

 atmospheric humidity in the gardens is 

 undoubtedly much lower than in the 

 swamp-like oases of the Jerid and the 

 Oued Rirh, and this also must tend to 

 improve the quality of the fruit. Cer- 

 tain it is that dates ripen early in the 

 Souf. None remained on the trees at 

 the time of my visit (November 22-26), 

 while in the Jerid the harvest continued 

 that year until January. The Deglet 

 Noor dates produced in the Oued Souf 

 are carried by caravan to Biskra, whence 

 they are shipped to Europe. 



On terraces constructed in the slopes 

 of the bordering dunes, a few feet above 

 the floor of the basins, are located the 

 shallow wells which furnish water for 

 starting the palms and for irrigating the 

 little vegetable gardens, which are also 

 usually situated on these terraces. The 

 water is lifted by means of a contrivance 

 very similar to the Egyptian "shadoof." 

 It consists of a basket daubed with pitch, 

 hung on the end of a palm trunk that is 

 supported between upright posts. A 

 stone fastened to the larger end of the 

 pole serves as a counterpoise. 



Since the soil of their country is a 

 nearly pure sand which will not stand up 

 when wet, the Soufis are compelled to 



resort to plaster made from a gypseous 

 rock in constructing the dikes by which 

 the irrigation water is retained on their 

 plats of vegetables. Conduits made of 

 the same material lead the water to the 

 plats, and plugs of wool are used to dam 

 the tiny stream at the point where it is 

 to be diverted. The lining of the wells 

 is also made of this cement, and it is 

 used in constructing the mounds with 

 which the weakened bases of old date 

 palms are reinforced. The rock from 

 which this plaster is made outcrops here 

 and there among the dunes. It fre- 

 quently occurs in large clusters of crys- 

 tals known as "Souf roses." The small 

 kilns in which the rock is burned are a 

 characteristic feature of the roadsides in 

 some parts of the country. 



The human ants who have wrought 

 out this highly specialized system of 

 horticulture in the teeth of such tremen- 

 dous obstacles are, it scarcely need be 

 said, far more industrious and energetic 

 than most of the natives of northern 

 Africa. The Soufis not only find time 

 for the heavy labor needed to protect 

 their date gardens, but tend flocks of 

 sheep and goats and manage besides a 

 great part of the caravan business in the 

 northern Sahara. There appears to be a 

 tribal distinction between the more sed- 

 entary gardeners and the widely trav- 

 eled conductors of caravans. The cam- 

 els of the Souf are reputed to be the 

 largest and strongest in all the great 

 desert. 



As a rule, the Soufis, like their date 

 palms, are strong and healthy looking, 

 being favored by their climate, which is 

 a good one despite the intense summer 

 heat. The absence of surface water is 

 probably the chief reason for the health- 

 fulness of the country. The Souf is 

 said to be free from mosquitoes, which 

 make life a burden during many months 

 of the year in the Jerid and the Oued 

 Rirh. Malaria, the scourge of the irri- 

 gated oases, is apparently unknown here. 



The absence of clay suitable for mak- 

 ing the sun-baked brick of which houses 

 are constructed elsewhere in the Sahara 

 has put another tax upon the ingenuity 



