[4]Artemisia.
[5]One of the hydreumata, or watering stations placed by the Ptolemies at frequent intervals along the numerous roads across this desert, which led to the quarries and gold and emerald mines, which were worked as late as the time of Trajan Hadrian, circa 147 A.D. At this period camels were not used but oxen and carts.
[6]Capparis spinosa; Arabic, lussuf.
[7]Small stone shelters are made near watering-places frequented by ibex. In these the Bedawin lie hid, and shoot.
[8]Fifty thousand gallons, an unusually large quantity. Much rain fell in the preceding season. This is the reservoir marked on the War Office map. That at which the party watered was dry when the map was made, and the pool is not marked. Great caution is used before marking “water” on a desert map.
[9]Necessary with a young camel, and not so painful as it seems.
[10]“Yessar” is the Arabic name for the moringa aptera mentioned later on.
[11]These aneroid heights may be taken as correct.
[12]Herr Lepsius, commanding the German Expedition of 1842-45 was the first, in modern days, to cross this pass or “Nojeb.” His party were lost in these mountains, and of this pass in particular he speaks in almost horror. He unloaded the camels, and his men carried the loads to the bottom.
[13]Oïridh, “devils”; Hindustani, latūr; Arabic, sheitan. These are in the desert what waterspouts are in the sea, and might be called sandspouts were not “spout” indescriptive of the appearance in either case.