pped away; the other followed, and if he could gain on his adversary,
chose his distance to return the fire. Each horseman in succession from
both troops advanced, repeating the same manoeuvre, but often describing
circles in their flight or in their advance for the purpose of cutting off
the boldest of their adversaries, who might have ventured too far in the
eagerness of pursuit. It was only when this was successfully accomplished
that any attempt was made to close and use the sabre, though even in these
last and desperate encounters, the great object was rather to secure
prisoners than to slay enemies. The lance was evidently regarded by both
parties as a useless weapon. The meanest trooper of the desert was so
completely master of this unwieldy weapon as to avoid or parry its thrust
with perfect confidence, so that when Bedoween met Bedoween, lances were
laid aside.

The mimic fight, however, continued longer, and was extended over a much
greater space of ground than Hafiz Bey had contemplated. He evidently
began to grow uneasy, a circumstance which our travellers attributed to
the effect of the impalement on his nerves, though it really arose from
the fear he began to entertain that his severity in punishing theft had
wounded the sympathies of the Arabs. He accordingly despatched one of his
own Curds to request the Arab chief to draw nearer to the infantry, and
thus place themselves within the range of his artillery, and perhaps for
the purpose of enforcing this order, he directed his Curdish horsemen to
move towards the rear of the Bedoweens. The Arabs clearly disapproved of
the movement, and disliked the orders, so without deigning to salute Hafiz
Bey, both his own Arabs of Gaza and the new-comers from Egypt suddenly set
off at a gallop and soon disappeared among the hills towards the desert.
An endeavour was made to treat this incident as a part of the review, but
alarm soon seized both the spectators and the troops that remained, and
the Bey was obliged to scamper back to Gaza as fast as possible, lest some
treason should place another in possession of his government before his
arrival.

In the evening, the Franks were again summoned to pay Hafiz Bey a visit,
but neither Mr Lascelles Hamilton nor the accomplished Mohammed, the
dragoman of Mr Ringlady, could be found. Achmet too had fallen ill in the
morning, so that the party had to present itself before the governor with
diminished splendour. On their arrival