Page:The Northern Ḥeǧâz (1926).djvu/83

 the fire above them, turned them twice, and then proceeded to feast on them. After supper he lit a small fire, placed a can of strong coffee near it, called for a handful of tobacco, sat down by the fire, and smoked and drank coffee until dawn.



On Sunday, June 5, 1910, we were in the saddle again at 5.08 (temperature: 15.2° C) and made our way southward through the defile of al-Merṣed. To the west rise the rocks of al-Mdajfen and to the east those of ʻAtûd. They both consist of vertical, black granite ribs, over which are layers of yellowish limestone, gnawed and consumed by the action of rain, wind, heat, and cold. Lying in the defile there are large pieces of limestone that have broken away. At 5.20, through the gap in al-Mdajfen, we caught sight of the sharp obelisks formed by the granite mountains of at-Till, to the southwest, northeast of which were the broad summits Rwêsât al-Ḫâlde and to the south the huge pyramid of Bâḳer. The reflected rays of the rising sun seemed to glance off all these peaks in showers. At 5.34 we crossed the path leading east-