JACKALS — LANGUAGE OF SIGNS. 
85 
shall not be obliged to await the return of the 
salt-caravan from Bilma (that is, a month, or forty 
days) before we start. Probably, when good news 
comes from the camp in the west we shall go on. 
It will be a sad trial for our patience to wait so 
long, after having already dallied more than two 
months in Tintalous. 
7th. — The thermometer at sunrise stood at 51° 
— very cold. There are no signs yet of Zangheema's 
starting to Damerghou. The people, when sitting 
over the fire in the evening, relate jocosely that 
the jackals, not being able to come near the flame, 
and nevertheless feeling the cold very much, hold 
up their fore-paws, in a sitting or squatting position, 
in imitation of men, towards the fire, be they at 
ever so great a distance, and so screw up their 
imaginations to the belief that they are warming 
themselves. The language of gesticulation and 
signs, by the movement of different parts of the 
body, is quite a study in this part of the world. 
The most singular gesticulation, and yet the most 
significant, is that by which a person begs a thing. 
He holds the object in one hand (the left) before 
the owner, then gives the right hand and arm a 
swing round, and at last places the right hand to 
his bosom — the meaning of all which is, that he 
seeks to ascertain if the owner has any other 
article of the same description as that which he 
holds in his left hand, and whether he is willing 
to give it to him. When a Kailouee says a thing 
