MERGE TO GYRENE. 
519 
to its influence to keep the head well covered if they would avoid a 
coup-de-soleil. The force of habit will at the same time enable 
Europeans to encounter much more heat than they would venture 
to subject themselves to on first arriving from more temperate 
regions : we found that we could walk about the whole of the day 
(which we were obliged to do in making our plans) without feehng 
more than what may be termed inconvenience ; and the greatest 
annoyance was the reflection from the ground on our eyes and lips, 
which the masses of white stone among which we had to scramble, 
in examining and taking measurements of the ruins, made stronger 
than is felt in cultivated places : these become so hot from ten or 
eleven o’clock till sunset that the atmosphere about them is like that 
of an oven ; the heat which is reflected from them absolutely 
scorches, and the eyes of persons lopg exposed to its influence would 
probably suffer materially. For the rest, the heat may be borne 
without prejudice (especially through the folds of an ample turban) 
unless a greater freedom of diet be indulged in than is prudent 
in any hot climate. We saw very few serpents in the Pen- 
tapolis, and very few scorpions, even among the ruins, where they 
are generally fond of hiding themselves; but the grass land, at 
Cyrene in particular, is much infested by a dark-coloured centiped, 
almost black, with red feelers and legs ; we usually found half a 
dozen of them in taking up the mats in our tents, and had great 
difficulty in killing them. Any part which chanced to be separated 
from the rest of the body would continue to run about as if nothing 
had happened, and were the reptile even divided into twenty pieces 
