114 
PILLARS OF SAND. 
freshment, it only threatened to bury us under the mountains 
of sand which it raised, and what was still more alarming, 
our water diminished rapidly from the extreme drought 
which it occasioned. Nobody suffered more intensely from 
thirst than the poor little slaves, who were crying for water. 
Exhausted by their sufferings and their lamentations, these 
unhappy creatures fell on the ground, and seemed to have no 
power to rise ; but the Moors did not suffer them to con- 
tinue there long when traveUing. Insensible to the suffer- 
ings which childhood is so little fitted to support, these bar- 
barians dragged them along with violence, beating them 
incessantly, till they had overtaken the camels, which were 
already at a distance. 
Indeed, no person was privileged ; even the Moors, 
whose turn it was to walk by the camels, and who, partly to 
amuse themselves and partly to encourage the animals, sang 
to them as they marched by their side, were under the same 
law as those who were riding, and never tasted water except 
when it was distributed to the whole caravan. I thought I 
could perceive nevertheless that Sidy-Aly had under his 
dress a small bottle, like our hunting bottles, and that the 
old fox made use of it every now and then in secret to refresh 
himself, without any regard for his brethren. 
What distressed us most during this horrible day was 
the pillars of sand, which threatened every moment to bury 
us in their course. One of the largest of these pillars cros- 
sed our camp, overset all the tents, and whirling us about 
like straws, threw us one upon another in the utmost con- 
fusion ; we knew not where we were, and could distinguish 
nothing at the distance of a foot. The sand wrapped us in 
darkness like a thick fog, and heaven and earth seemed con- 
founded and blended into one. 
In this commotion of nature, the consternation was 
general ; nothing was heard on all sides but lamentation, and 
most of my companions recommended themselves to heaven. 
