72 
VISITED BY OFFICIALS. 
trees until gathered by the owners." It must be 
observed, however, that the anomaly of vast pos- 
sessions being held by one man, who can scarcely 
consume or utilise the produce, whilst others have 
not a stone whereon to lay their heads, and depend 
even for a burial-place upon charity, is not to be 
observed in this barbarous country. 
The children of the Wady, up to the age of seven 
or eight years, go about perfectly naked, which may 
partly account for the bronze-black colour of their 
skins. The Tuaricks are generally fairer than the 
Fezzanees, though some of these latter are fair as 
the Moors on the coast, whilst others are black as 
very niggers. 
We received a visit from the Nather, or civil 
governor of the Wady. He is a Fezzanee, Abbas 
by name ; and thankfully received the present of a 
handkerchief. The Kai'd, or military commander, 
is a Moor from Tripoli. Everybody seems inte- 
rested about us, and there is a perfect flux of visits. 
All the authorities around seem to make our arrival 
a holiday. We are quite the fashion. The chaouch 
gets drunk in the evening on leghma, furnished by 
the Nather, who wants to worm out all the news; and 
there is little doubt that he has learned the whole 
truth, and a good deal more. El-Maskouas, the 
Turkish officer employed in collecting contributions 
for Mourzuk, arrived at the camp and brought letters 
from M. Gagliuffi. He also told us that the Sheikh 
of Aghadez had not yet returned from his pil- 
