Page:The Northern Ḥeǧâz (1926).djvu/175

 o’clock we observed the tracks of about thirty riders on camels. These tracks were scarcely more than twenty-four hours old and were directed toward the east. We knew that a band of raiders was proceeding that way, but it was not certain whether they were friends or enemies, whether they were riding due east or had branched off and were encamping somewhere to the right or left of the road.

Suddenly, from the southeast, a strong wind began to blow, raising and filling the air with sand and flinging it into our eyes. The sand was most dense in a layer up to a height of about two meters, above which it began to grow thinner. Finding it impossible to see where we were going, we covered our faces and did not attempt to guide the camels. Every ten minutes or so the wind would subside and the sand would sink down for two or three minutes, but even in these moments of peace it was impossible to see as far as four hundred meters. The grains of sand penetrated through our clothes and into our mouths, eyes, noses, ears, and skin, and caused us a curious nervous pain. After 3.30 the rocky gap grew wider and the onslaught of the sand became all the stronger. We sought a shelter in which to wait until the storm passed, but in vain. Not until after five o’clock did I perceive on our left, on the slope of Ammu Zrûḳ, a ravine, and with my weary camel I made my way towards it. The ravine led into a deep hollow where we descended at 5.18. Here in places was a growth of ṛaẓa bushes, which our camels completely devoured after a few minutes and then vainly searched for more. The hollow was enclosed by walls about one hundred meters high, across which the sand was carried, so that only an insignificant amount of it fell on us. In a small cleft in the southeastern rocky wall we made a fire and prepared our supper. At eight o’clock we rode on. The storm still continued, but we had to proceed on our way if we wished to reach Tebûk in time. We passed through a defile in the plateau of al-Medârîǧ amid rugged and bare rocks until 10.18 P. M., when we encamped among the rocks Berḳa’-d-Dimež.

On Saturday, June 18, 1910, early in the morning I climbed with Mḥammad to a neighboring rock to get a view of the surrounding district. To the northwest I saw the