Page:The Northern Ḥeǧâz (1926).djvu/68

 eastern part of the aš-Šera’ range. The latter was entirely covered with dark green plants, which made it resemble an endless expanse of grainfields. The lowlands were still covered with dark blue shadows, from which the separate peaks rose like fabulous monsters. At 7.30 there was a slight shower, which, however, did not last long, and at 7.35 near a ruined watchtower we crossed the Darb as-Sulṭâni or, as our guide called it, as-Sikke, the highroad.

At the post and telegraph station of al-Ḳwêra, as-Sikke swings off to the northeast and runs alongside the telegraph line across the eastern slopes of the šeʻîb of Ammu Ṣawra, past the mutilated cones of al-Maʻejṣi, al-Mešârîḳ, al-Ḫlejfi, and al-Moṛr to Ḏerw aṣ-Ṣulba, over which it gains the spur of Štâr. Winding around the western side of the latter, it reaches the ridge of aš-Šera’ near the ruins of Štâr. From there it continues in an almost northerly direction through the šeʻîb of Wahadân to the ruins of al-Fwêle, Ab-al-Lesel, and Mṛejjera, after which it trends to the northeast following the šeʻîb of aḏ-Ḏawâwi as far as Maʻân. The telegraph line is installed to the east of the road upon the slopes of Swêmât and Ammu-l-Ḳṣejr.

At 8.09 we rode through the beginning of the šeʻîb of al-Ḫajjâṭ, which runs towards the ruins of aš-Šdejjid. The camels found the crossing quite difficult, as the ridge is cut by deep ravines with stony sides, and it was necessary to dismount and mount again, no easy task among the shifting stones. At 8.35, on the left arm of al-Ǧemân and toward the northeast, we perceived the three huge, bare, dome-shaped peaks Nebât as-Swêmrât situated on the spur of the aš-Šera’ range between the ruins of Ab-al-Lesel and Ṭâsân. To the west our guide pointed out the spring of al-Ḳena’, from which an aqueduct leads down to the ruins of al-Ḥomejma.

A tortoise measuring about twenty-five centimeters in diameter crawled across our path. We wanted to catch it to make soup from it, but our native companions protected the animal, saying that it was poisonous. We knew, of course, that this was not true, but we did not take the tortoise, not wishing to provoke our people unnecessarily. At 9.28 we observed the small ruin of Ammu Ḏijâb in a gully on our right.

At 9.40, on the eastern foot of the huge mountain of al-Ḳrajjeʻe near the shallow well Bîr Turki, we met four