tle became more and more distinct, and at length we could
overlook the palm-wood towards the sea, the beauty and shade of which
had been so frequently enlarged upon by the camel-drivers. There can
indeed be no more attractive picture for the mind of an Arab to dwell
upon, when toiling over shifting sands under a scorching sun, than that
of a plantation of palms, with abundant supply of water, on the shores
of an invigorating sea!

[Illustration: WADI ABOU-SBEH.]

As we approached El Harish, a row of men gathered outside the town wall.
After saluting them we proceeded to our tents at the south-east end
of the town. Having reached them we were congratulated by Abou Nabout
upon having safely accomplished our journey across the desert.

After dinner we were visited by some of the authorities, who were
extremely cordial. As usual we offered them coffee and cigars. Their
stay, however, was but short, as they rightly presumed that we needed
repose.

VI.

EL HARISH.

El Harish is the town of the desert which forms the most advanced post
of the Khedive in the direction of Turkish territory, and, as it
possesses many remarkable features, is worthy of a detailed description.
As the point of convergence of the caravan routes, the entire life of
the place is bound up with the caravan traffic, carried on by the
resident population with their camels; it is, in a word, a place of
camel-keepers. It is situated at about two miles from the sea, on the
outskirts of the desert, the daily advancing sands of which threaten in
time to cover a considerable portion of the town, and indeed have
already overwhelmed many houses in the south-west quarter of it.

The climate is extremely salubrious. Snow is never to be seen; but there
are frequent hailstorms and heavy falls of rain, particularly in
February. The temperature is highest immediately after the Hampsin,
that is, at the beginning of the summer, and the very hot season lasts
four months. The strongest wind is the Hampsin, which prevails for fifty
days, and is here particularly disagreeable from the quantity of sand
which it brings.

[Illustration: EL HARISH.]

The population numbers 2800 souls, exclusive of the Bedouins living in
the neighbourhood. With scarcely an exception, the people are
Mussulmans, and extremely fanatical; some portion of them are of Turkish
origin, but none speak Arabic. There are but eight Christians in the
place--three of whom are women. The garri