CHAP. III. 
OF THE TUARICK. 
Ill 
people are considered sure marksmen. They are, if possible, more 
superstitious than the natives of Fezzan ; some of them being 
hterally covered with charms against disorders and accidents, which 
they wear round their arms, legs, necks, across the breast, and in 
fact wherever they can find a place for them. Their spears and 
guns have also their due allowance, and in the folds of the turbans 
are always hidden a number of holy writings. Some wear large 
silver cases tied round the head, containing charms against the 
devil. Their language is the Breber, or original African tongue, 
still spoken in the mountains behind Tunis, in some parts of 
Morocco, and at Socka, where it is called Ertana. On a future 
occasion I shall give a small vocabulary of it. They are very proud 
of the antiquity of their language, which some have told me was 
spoken by Noah, in preference to any other. They never kiss the 
hand as other Mohammedans do, not even that of the Sultan him- 
self, but advance, and, taking the hand, shake it, and then retire, 
standing erect, and looking him full in the face — a striking contrast 
of manners to that of the natives of Fezzan. No people have 
more aversion to washing than the Tuarick generally have ; some, 
after having equipped themselves in a new suit of blue, become so 
stained for a time as to appear of the same complexion as their 
garments. Even in performing their necessary purifications, which 
require that a man should wash in a particular way before his 
prayers, they avoid water, and make use of sand. Many attempts 
were made by us to discover the reason why they kept themselves 
in such a dirty state ; but to all our inquiries we obtained nearly 
the same answers : " God never intended that man should injure 
his health, if he could avoid it : water having been given to man 
to drink, and cook with, it does not agree with the skin of a Tua- 
rick, who always falls sick after much washing." There are some, 
however, who do wash, and ridicule, the dirty ones ; but these are 
