CHAP. VIII. RETURN TO TRIPOLI. 297 
to be), and makes them bring a better price to their owners. The 
males are not so carefully attended to, having generally only a long 
shirt and barracan. Both sexes have sandals of camel's hide ; the 
girls walk by themselves, and the men follow the camels. At one 
o'clock they are all watered like cattle, out of large bowls, placed 
on the ground, from which they kneel and drink. Children are 
thrown with the baggage on the camels, if unable to walk ; but if 
five or six years of age, the poor httle creatures are obliged to trot 
on all day, even should no stop be made for fourteen or fifteen 
hours, as I have sometimes witnessed. We passed a Kaffle of 
about twenty camels from Tripoh, with a chowse of the Bashaw, 
loaded with corn for Morzouk ; they informed us that the Bashaw 
had sent an army against Angela, and that the plague had ceased 
at Tunis and Jerba. At four we turned from the road to go to a 
well, Ghroodwa being considered too long a journey for the slaves: 
we had travelled until that time north 40° east nineteen miles. At 
7. 30. we arrived at Neshoua (a Wadey running east-north-east), 
having cleared north by west seven miles. A well of good water was 
here, and we lay down amongst the palm bushes. In unloading the 
camels, Belford's Maherry took fright, and running on to the desert, 
his saddle fell off, and the beast lamed himself sadly by striking his 
toe against it : some Arabs from the neighbourhood seeing us 
cooking, came and supped with us. The mess of the slaves i^ pro- 
vided before that of their masters ; it consists of Bazeen, of which 
each one has a portion about as large as the double fist ; and a bowl 
is filled with grease and pepper, into which they occasionally dip 
their paste. The daily allowance of food is a quart of dates in the 
morning, and half a pint of flour made into Bazeen at night. Some 
masters never allow their slaves to drink after a meal, unless at a 
watering place. When the meal is finished, they all lie down, the 
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