0 
92 APPEARANCE OF THE DESERT. 
the first thing done on the arrival of a caravan is to clear 
avray the sand. 
On the 6th of May we resumed our march, at three in 
the morning, and continued our route to the north. Still 
the same soil, the same aridity, and the same uniformity, as 
on the preceding days. 
The atmosphere was very heavy all day, and the heat 
excessive. It seemed as if we should have rain. The sun, 
concealed by clouds, appeared only at long intervals. But 
our prayers did not obtain from Heaven a drop of rain. In 
spite of all the prognostics no shower fell. The further 
northward we proceeded the more barren the country be- 
came. We no longer saw either thistles or salvadoras : sad 
consolations, where all nature wears so frightful an aspect! 
The plain had here the precise appearance of the ocean ; 
perhaps such as the bed of a sea would have, if left by the 
water* In fact, the winds form in the sand undulating 
furrows, like the waves of the sea when a breeze slightly 
ruffles its surface. At the sight of this dismal spectacle, of 
this awful abandonment and nakedness, I forgot for a moment 
my hardships, to reflect on the violent convulsions which 
thus appeared to have dried up part of the ocean, and of 
the sudden catastrophes which have changed the face of 
our globe. 
At eleven in the morning we halted. The heat was 
insupportable, and we seated ourselves beside some unhealthy 
looking mimosas, over which we extended our wrappers, for 
these shrubs being destitute of leaves afforded no shade of 
themselves. Under our tents thus formed, we had distributed 
to us a calabash of water, which was rendered tepid by 
the east wind. According to our custom, we threw into the 
water some handfuls of dokhnou. Finally, to relieve our- 
selves from every immediate care, we sent a slave to watch 
our camels, which were endeavouring to refresh themselves 
by browsing on some withered herbage. We then lay down to 
