THE SOURCE OFTHENILE. 437
It was not till the eighth of May I had my audience of Shekh Adelan at Aira, which is three miles and a half from Sennaar; we walked out early in the morning, for the greateft part of the way along the fide of the Nile, which had no beauty, being totally divefted of trees, the bottom foul and muddy, and the edges of the water white with fmall concretions of calcarious earth, which, with the bright fun upon them, dazzled and affedled our eyes very much.
We then ftruck acrofs a large fandy plain without trees or buflies, and came to Adelan's habitation ; two or three^ very confiderable houfes of one ftorey occupied the middle of a large fquare, each of whofe fides was at leaft half of an Engliih mile, hiftead of a wall to inclofe this fquare, was a high fence or impalement of ftrong reeds, canes, or ilalks of dora, (I do not know which) in fafcines ilrongly joined together by flakes and cords. On the outfidc of the gate, on each hand, were fix houfes of a flighter conflru(5tion than the reft; clofeupon the fence were iheds where the fol- diers lay, the horfes picqueted before them with their heads turned towards the ilieds, and their food laid before them on the ground ; above each loldier's fleeping-place, co- vered only on the top and open in the fides, were hung a lance, a fmall oval fhield, and a large broad-fword. Thefe, I underftood, were chiefly quarters for couriers, who being Arabs, were not taken into the court or fquare, but fliut out, at night.
Within the gate was a number of horfes, with the fol- dicrs barracks behind them ; they were all picqueted in ranks, their faces to their mailers barracks. It was one of the finefl: fights 1 ever faw of the kind. They were all above
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