among the Arabs of the Great African Desert. 47 
embers are mixed with the sand, and the hide, or other animal 
food, is covered over with the mixture, when it is soon roasted, 
and devoured by the Arabs, without any nice attention to the 
particles of sand which may be adhering to it. They also occa- 
sionally eat locusts, which are roasted in a similar manner. 
At El Sharing, all the camels, sheep and goats, belonging to 
the party, with two persons of each family, were left, and a large 
boat was hired to convey them across the lake. This boat was 
very long, — was built of a red wood, something like mahogany, 
—^appeared to have no iron about her, — and even her rudder 
was fastened by ropes of strav/ or grass. Between seventy and 
eighty of their party embarked in this boat, amongst whom was 
Scott. The boat was commanded by an Arab of a darker 
complexion than those with whom Scott had travelled, and 
manned by six blacks, whom Scott considered to be slaves, from 
the treatment they experienced from their master ; for he ob- 
served, that they, as well as other Negroes, who are numerous 
at El Sharrag, were often beaten by the Arabs. The boat start- 
ed at sunrise, and was rowed with six oars, until a little before 
sunset, at a rate (as Scott imagined) of about two miles an hour« 
The oars w^ere very short and clumsy ; the blacks sat two on 
the same seat, with their faces to the stem, rowing with quick 
and short strokes, and raising the body at each stroke, not sit- 
ting steady, and making a long pull, as English sailors do. 
They rested half a dozen times through the day, for about ten 
minutes or a quarter of an hour at a time. A little before sun- 
set, a large stone, which served as an anchor, was let down v/ith 
about twenty fathoms of cable, and the boat remained stationary 
all night. They weighed anchor again at sunrise, proceeded as 
before, till sunset, and then again cast anchor. Soon after day- 
break on the third day, they again got under weigh, and pro- 
ceeded until about two o’clock in the afternoon, when they ar- 
rived at the opposite shore. Their course was straight for the 
t\ro mountains already noticed, and they landed at their foot, 
in a country called El Hezsh. 
The lake is named Bahdr Tub Judging by the position 
• According to Scott, “ Bahar signifies a water on which boats can go,” and 
“ Tieb or fresh,” The name is therefore the ‘‘ Fresh Water Lake or 
