29 11 Arles: an ancient city on the Rhone, nine miles south of Tarascon. Its women, of a marked Greek type, are famed for their beauty, which is enhanced by a very picturesque head-dress (coiffe). --venues en croupe de leur galant: 'riding behind their sweethearts.' Note that leur galant is singular; cf. ses deux fusils dans leur gaine 71 25; cf. also note to 92 15, and Savoyards ... la tête ... leurs 1 8. We say 'arms bare to the elbow', cf. 19 14-15.
29 18 Mésopotamie: 'Mesopotamia,' that part of Asia which lies between the Tigris and the Euphrates.
29 22 traçant ... sillons glorieux: 'leaving, as it were, glorious furrows in their wake.' Note the force of comme; cf. 31 19, 34 9.
29 25 laissant voir: 'permitting to be seen'; cf. note to 7 25.
30 3 il se fit: cf. note to 5 23.
30 12 avait cru de son devoir ... de: 'had thought it his duty ... to.'
30 14 en toile blanche: en is used to denote the material of which a thing is made. De also may be used: une table d'acajou, but we find des commodes en acajou 82 7; cf. un sac de cuir 51 4, une serviette en cuir 71 14.
30 16 chechia: the cap worn by the natives of Algeria; as used by the Algerian sharpshooters of the French army it is somewhat like a fez (note to 33 25), but less close.