CHAP. IX. 
RETURN TO TRIPOLI. 
333 
bushes ; in many places the ground bore marks of the plough. At 
noon we had travelled north 10" west, ten miles, when the sky 
became much overcast. We lost our road until this period, and 
now having found it, proceeded north 20° east. At five the rain 
came on, and we encamped on some small hillocks in the wadey, 
having made fourteen miles since noon. Total, twenty-four miles. 
The latter part of our road was hilly and full of wadeys. Our tents 
were no sooner pitched than very heavy rain came on, in a tre- 
mendous storm (called Gherra y by the Arabs) : thunder and light- 
ning close to us. The noise was tremendous, and the wadey before 
us was quickly filled with a roaring torrent, sweeping all before it : 
happily, the tents were on a rising ground, which prevented them 
from being washed away. The mountain torrent continued all 
night. I had often heard these storms spoken of, but always ima- 
gined that the accounts given of them were much exaggerated ; I 
now found that the description did not at all come up to this night's 
tempest. Sixteen poor Negresses took shelter with me, and re- 
mained under the carpet, full of gratitude at being protected from a 
storm, the noise of which made them tremble. 
Saturday, 18th March. — A fine morning; fresh north-east wind 
blowing. We had a general clothes drying, and the slaves were 
oiled. At nine went on over high hills covered with stinted bushes. 
We saw a few Arabs with their cattle and flocks in the wadeys. At 
noon, having passed over a green plain, came to the gardens and 
corn-fields of Zleetun ^yoJJ. The country was very flat, and some 
spots of near a mile in length appeared as if they had been flooded 
during the night. The ground was so sHppery that some of the 
camels fell with their loads, and were with great diflSculty re-loaded 
and placed upon their legs again. The nature of the foot of a 
camel is such, that the animal never falls or stumbles when on flat 
or dry ground ; even on rocks it is sure-footed, but on mud it feels 
