er is shallow in many places; and when
people travel in the months of July, August, and September, the water
being then at the lowest, they have to carry a spare boat or two along
with them, to lighten their own boats in case of grounding on the
shoals. We were twenty-eight days upon the river in going between Bir
and Feluchia, at which last place we disembarked ourselves and our
goods.

During our passage down the Euphrates, we tied our boat to a stake every
night at sun-set, when we went on land and gathered some sticks to make
a fire, on which we set our pot, with rice or bruised wheat; and when
we had supped, the merchants went on board to sleep, while the mariners
lay down for the night on the shore, as near the boats as they could. At
many places on the river side we met with troops of Arabs, of whom we
bought milk, butter, eggs, and lambs, giving them in barter, for they
care not for money, glasses, combs, coral, amber, to hang about their
necks; and for churned milk we gave them bread and pomegranate peels,
with which they tan their goat skins which they use for churns. The
complexion, hair, and apparel of these Arabs, are entirely like to those
vagabond Egyptians who heretofore used to go about in England. All their
women, without one exception, wear a great round ring of gold, silver,
or iron, according to their abilities, in one of their nostrils, and
about their legs they have hoops of gold, silver, or iron. All of them,
men, women, and children, are excellent swimmers, and they often brought
off in this manner vessels with milk on their heads to our barks. They
are very thievish, as I proved to my cost, for they stole a casket
belonging to me, containing things of good value, from under my man's
head as he lay asleep.

At Bir the Euphrates is about as broad as the Thames at Lambeth, in some
places broader, and in others narrower, and it runs very swiftly, almost
as fast as the Trent. It has various kinds of fish, all having scales,
some like our barbels, as large as salmon. We landed at Feluchia on the
28th of June, and had to remain there seven days for want of camels to
carry our goods to Babylon, [Bagdat,] the heat at that season being so
violent that the people were averse from hiring their camels to travel.
Feluchia is a village of some hundred houses, and is the place appointed
for discharging such goods as come down the river, the inhabitants being
all Arabs. Not being able to procure camels, we had