THE AFRICAN ASSOCIATION. 307 
try of the Garamantes. Gadamis, like Fezzan, 
contains many ancient ruins. 
On the N. E. of Fezzan lies the desert of Sort, 
which is prolonged into that of Barca, through 
which the Cairo caravan, consisting of between 100 
and 300 travellers, passes from Mourzouk, which 
it leaves about the end of October. The route, 
which occupies 53 days, and about 770 miles, cros- 
ses the mountains of Hanibba, Ziltan, and Sibbeel, 
to Augela, the JEgila of Herodotus, and Augila 
of Ptolemy and Pliny, which lies in N. lat. 29° 
20\ From Augela, after crossing the barren ridges 
of Gerdobah, the Catabathmus of the ancients, 
which divided Cyrene from Marmarica, they reach 
in seven days the narrow sandy plain of Gegabib, 
-extremely fertile in dates. As it is uninhabited, 
these are gathered by the inhabitants of Derna, the 
ancient Darnis, situated on the sea- coast, about the 
distance of 130 miles. Herodotus relates, that the 
Nasamones were accustomed to leave their cattle 
on the coast, while they proceeded into the interior, 
to collect dates on the plains of iEgila. On the 
south of this route lies the great desert of Libya, 
which is possessed by the wandering tribe of Le- 
beta, or Levata, the Libyans of the ancients, from 
whom Africa derived its Grecian name, as they 
probably occupied the shore of Cyrene, when that 
country was colonized by the Greeks. Some of 
the stragglers of this nation seem to have been seen 
