Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 1.djvu/482

 marshes. The inhabitants, of somewhat darker complexion than the Egyptians, due probably to a mixture of Negro blood, for the most part present a cadaverous look, They are also very poor, being often obliged to pay the taxes in kind with palm-leaf baskets and suchlike articles.

Within the Kasr of Khargeh the buildings are crowded one on the other, and the network of narrow lanes runs underground through vaulted galleries. At rare intervals an aperture like that of a well gives access to a dazzling ray of light, relieving the gloom of these dark passages. Such is the style of building prevalent throughout all the towns of Siwah, as well as in many other towns in the oases, and the same arrangement occurs even in Nubia.

The Wah-el-Gharbieh, or "Western Oasis," better known as that of Dakhel, or Dakhleh, that is, the "Interior," is by far the most densely peopled, although scarcely mentioned by the ancient writers. Like Khargeh, it has its temple of

Jupiter Ammon, which is situated in the neighbourhood of the capital known by the name of El-Kasr, or "The Castle." This is probably the sanctuary that Cambyses intended to visit during the expedition to the south which ended so disastrously. The population consists of fellahin with the same usages and engaged in the same pursuits as those of the Nile Valley, but far more crowded together. Every foot of available land is carefully cultivated, and the date groves, tended with almost filial devotion, yield abundant supplies of delicious fruit.

Although described as a "detached fragment of Egypt," the Dakhel oasis nevertheless differs from it in its vegetation. Here are found plantations of olives, lemons, and oranges interspersed among the palm groves, and producing 4he finest fruits of the oases. The inhabitants of Dakhel have a few horses, but they have failed to breed camels, in consequence of a poisonous fly that infests the district during the summer, and whose bite is fatal to this animal. To the want of camels