ery loaf to each of us. The lamb was stuffed with rice and minced meat, almonds, raisins, walnuts, and spice. Salibh Agha placed some on my flat loaf, which served me as a plate, and he gave me a lump of meat in my hands. He had separated it from the bone with his short hunting dagger. The Arabs cook their meat so thoroughly that it is very tender and easily pulled and torn to pieces.
The men made deep depressions in the pyramidal mountain of rice—but each one carefully helped himself from that part of the dish which was nearest to him, and did not, if he could avoid it, disturb the rice near to the hole made in it by his neighbor, except when by way of courtesy he placed a delicate morsel of meat into it now and then. A roasted hare was added to the feast and soon distributed. The cream was eaten voraciously by dipping pieces of bent bread into it and scooping it up as with a spoon, so the spoon and its contents disappeared together. Scarcely a word was spoken by the Arabs during the meal. One by one they retired, saying, "God be praised," and went to the fountain to wash their hands and mouths, uttering an invocation to Allah.
We afterward rested for a short time, and pipes and coffee were handed round. I took the opportunity of putting the Agha, his little son, and his attendant, Khalîl, into my sketch-book. The latter seemed rather alarmed when he saw what I had done, and begged of me not to show his portrait in certain districts, for a price was set upon his head, and men sought after him to kill him. In the meantime, the servants and people so far emptied the large metal trays or dishes, that I could plainly see the Arabic sentences engraved on them—extracts from the Koran, and words of praise and prayer. Then most of the men covered their faces and slept, while I wandered about gathering and pressing specimens of all the flowers I could find, little Nimr good-naturedly helping me. Besides the ranunculus and anemone and others equally familiar, I met with many flowers which were strange to me. One was pink, and
