ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE
Hassanein Bey[Frontispiece]
The Oldest Man at Jalo[17]
Sidi Hussein Weikil[17]
Door to the Grand Senussi’s Tomb[20]
The Tomb of the Founder of theSenussi[20]
Camel Serenading the Camp atOuenat[24]
A Dying Camel[24]
Women of the Zaghawa Tribe[29]
Sayed Idris El Senussi[32]
The Judge of Jalo[36]
Zerwali[45]
Siwa[48]
Panorama of Jaghbub[52]
The Courtyard of the Mosque atJaghbub[61]
A Cloister at the Mosque ofJaghbub[65]
The Dome of the Mosque at Jaghbub[65]
The Explorer’s Caravan in aSand-Storm[69]
Desert Sands Covering Date-Trees[72]
The Zieghen Well[76]
A Halt in the Desert[76]
The Armed Men of the Caravan[81]
Happy Tebus at Kufra[84]
A Bidiyat Family[84]
Hawaria, a Landmark of Kufra[88]
Camels Crossing the Sand-Dunes[93]
Sayed Mohammed El Abid[96]
The House of Sayed El Abid[96]
Tebu Girl Wearing Bedouin Clothes[100]
A Tebu with his Camel[100]
Slave at Kufra[104]
Tebu Girl Carrying Burden on herHead[104]
Kufra[109]
The Oasis of Hawari[112]
South of Kufra[116]
Ruins of Kufra[120]
A Senussi Prince at Kufra[125]
Governor of Kufra[125]
Zwaya Chiefs at Kufra[129]
The Lake at Kufra[132]
El Taj[136]
The Council of Kufra[136]
Tuaregs in Kufra[141]
Two Tuaregs in Warrior Attire[141]
The Caravan on the Move in the Desertto Agah[144]
Sons of Sheikh Herri[148]
Approaching the Hills of Arkenu[152]
In the Open Desert[157]
The Hills of Arkenu[161]
The Explorer’s Camp at Ouenat[164]
The Caravan Approaching the GraniteHills of Ouenat[164]
Valley of Erdi[168]
Desert Breaking into Rock CountrySouth of Ouenat[168]
The Desert from the Hills ofOuenat[173]
The King of Ouenat[176]
The Explorer’s Kitchen in a Cave[181]
The Rock Valley Wells Found atOuenat[181]
At Arkenu[188]
The Most Important Discovery Made atOuenat[188]
White Sand Valley and Explorer’sCamp[193]
The Caravan Arriving at Ouenat[197]
The Valley of Erdi[200]
The First Tree Seen ApproachingErdi[204]
The Explorer’s Camp in the Valley ofErdi[208]
South of Erdi[208]
The Chieftain of the BidiyatTribe[213]
Two Bidiyat Men[213]
Bidiyat Belles[216]
Bidiyat Priest[216]
A Bidiyat Girl, with Her Sister[220]
A Bidiyat Girl, with Her Child[220]
A Bidiyat Party[225]
Girls at El Fasher Going toMarket[225]
Bidiyat Women[228]
Zaghawa Girl and Her Infant[228]
Market at Um Buru[232]
Explorer’s Camp at Um Buru[237]
Zaghawa Chiefs Coming Out to Welcomethe Party at Um Buru[241]
A Zaghawa Sheikh[244]
A Zaghawa Woman[244]
A Belle of the Zaghawa Tribe[253]
Zaghawa Girl[253]
Well on the Frontier of Darfur[256]
A Water-Carrier in the Desert[260]
A Woman of the Fallata Tribe[260]
A Well near Kuttum in Darfur. WomenWorking[269]
Sudanese Troops and Girls[272]
Well on the Frontier of Darfur[280]
A Chief of the Zaghawa Tribe ofDarfur[289]
The Reception of the Explorer at ElFasher[296]
El Fasher[304]
MAP
The Libyan Desert Showing the Author’sRoute[8]

THE LOST OASES


The Lost Oases

CHAPTER I

THE DESERT

ON my first trip through the Libyan Desert I took a vow.

We had lost our way, and we had lost all hope. There was no sign of the oasis we sought, no sign of any well near-by. The desert seemed cruel and merciless, and I vowed that if ever we came through alive I would not return again.