descendants in Algeria. The Roman type is even said to be well preserved. amongst the Ulad-el-Asker, or "Sons of Soldiers," in eastern Kabylie. Although good Mussulmans, the inhabitants of Tebessa still call themselves "Romans;" nor in their mouths is the term "Rumi" confused with that of "Christian," as amongst the other Mohammedans of Algeria. Roman coins were still current in Algiers when that town was taken by the French in 1842. Of the ten sections of the Amamra tribe, in the northern districts of Aures, two are supposed to be of Roman and three of Shawïa (Berber) descent, while the others were formed under murabut influences since the Mussulman invasion.
But whatever proportion of the indigenous population may be of Roman or European origin, the local traditions, as well as certain historic evidences, point to the East as the home of most of the immigrants. From Asia came the ancient Libou (Libyans), who gave their name to the whole continent, and who have been identified with the Luâta, or Liuâta, one of the powerful tribes of Barbary at the
time of the Arab conquest. After reducing the peoples of Mauritania and driving the aborigines from the plains to the upland valleys, the Mohammedan invaders continued to follow the general westward movement of migration. At the same time the changes of soil and climate, combined with the shiftings of population caused by these events, naturally tended to modify the habits of the peoples, in one place softening in another accentuating their mutual contrasts. At their first arrival the Berber intruders can have differed little from their Arab successors. But while wars, invasions, and marauding expeditions fostered a nomad existence, defeat and the imposition of regular tribute compelled many wandering communities to adopt a settled life. Thus their daily pursuits are not always a certain proof of their ethnical affinities. Many ages before the Arab invasion the Numidians, from whom the present so-called "Berber" population is partly descended, were themselves "nomads," as is probably indicated by their very
