THE CHIEFTAIN OF THE BIDIYAT TRIBE
His sword over his shoulder is carried ordinarily on the left arm, with his wrist through the thong
TWO BIDIYAT MEN
Note the finer type of physique
Immediately on our arrival the camels were sent into the valley to be watered and to bring back the supply of water of which we were much in need.
Two hours after we pitched camp the two Tebus left behind arrived with a supply of meat from the slaughtered camel, which was eaten with enthusiasm for dinner. A hot, gusty wind blew all the afternoon. While I was resting in my tent I was suddenly aroused by something tickling my ear and tried to brush it away, without discovering what it was. In a moment a gust of wind blew in one of the side walls of the tent, which had been raised for ventilation, and I felt something darting across my body. I grasped at it instinctively and, fortunately for my peace of mind, missed it. It was a snake some four feet long, which was subsequently caught by my men and despatched.
The men held a shooting competition in the afternoon. It started as a perfunctory affair, but the interest quickened when I put up a Medjidie—a Turkish dollar—as a prize. Senussi Bu Jaber, though short-sighted, won the contest. Hamid expressed the feelings of the other contestants when he said: “It was the Medjidie that worked on my emotions and made me nervous. I had hit the mark before.”
I made observations and took photographs, and, incidentally, treated the guide’s teeth.