134 
HAMMA — BARGOT. 
anything like a Christmas gift, I should then have all 
the people upon me, begging everything I had left. 
Yesterday I spoke a few words to Hamma, son-in- 
law of En-Noor, and he immediately asked me for a 
turban. I had not spoken to him for several weeks, 
or only saluted him with a few words, in order to 
avoid his begging. This man has already had from 
me presents to the amount of fifty dollars ! Thus I 
am cut off from all conversation with these people, 
and have no practice in speaking the languages of 
the interior. I must try to get on better than this. 
Overweg, as doctor, is better off. The sick, and the 
people who bring the sick, must talk to him, and 
must receive a favour from him. And he frequently 
gets a few cheeses in return. The women make 
extraordinary propositions. The other day they 
offered him a slave or a bullock for a medicine to 
produce a child. 
The place of our encampment is called Bargot, 
which I believe is also the name of a well, near or 
about an hour and a-half distant. I have also heard 
the name of Bergu. Yesterday we passed some 
ruins of houses, built of stone and mud. I am glad 
that Barth borrowed my Bible, and is reading to-day. 
Overweg also was the first to propose prayers on 
Sundays when we are staying long together in one 
place. 
We are now near the Hamadah, which is a 
journey of full four days without water. We ar- 
rive at the water on the morning only of the fifth 
