202 JOURNEY FROM Early the next morning, as we were making the customary preparations for continuing our journey, we perceived that our new cameldrivers had all assembled together, and on being told to bring the camels as usual, not one of them stirred from his place, the whole party exclaming in concert, in no very conciliatory tones, hiit el flus, hat el flus, give us the money. Here was evidently one of those concerted manoeuvres which Arabs of all classes are so skilful in practising ; but we were at a loss to conjecture its real cause, which is generally very different from the apparent one. At Boosaida, where the camels were hired, we had arranged with the Dhbbah that they should be paid for on arriving at Bengazi ; and the cameldrivers themselves, who (with the exception of one) were all his own relations, had certainly understood and agreed to this arrangement.

But they were now in a place which was too well adapted to their views to be passed without inventing some scheme for extorting money, a practice which is seldom omitted by an Arab when he thinks there is a proper opportunity for making such an attempt.

A more dreary and barren spot could scarcely have been anywhere found than that which our friends here selected ; it was at least two days’ journey from any encampment, and wholly without produce of any kind ; if we except the rocks and stones of the soil, and the jackalls and hyaenas which sheltered themselves among them.

It was imagined that being here without any resource, unable to procure either provisions or water, and far from any inhabited place, we should necessarily be induced to comply with whatever demands it might be advisable to make on the occasion. They could not