of red and white cistus, red everlasting, and
fragrant thyme and sage, with occasional terebinth-trees festooned with
honeysuckle, we came upon a district covered with millions, or billions,
or probably trillions, of locusts, not fully grown, and only taking short
flights; but they greatly annoyed our horses. My choice Arab, being at
that time ridden by my servant, fairly bolted away with fright for a
considerable distance.

At length we halted at a small spring oozing from the soil of the field.
The place was called _Hheker Zaboot_--a pretty place, and cuckoos on the
trees around us; only the locusts were troublesome.

'Abdu'l 'Azeez proposed that instead of going at once to Ammon, we should
make a detour by Heshbon and Elealeh, on the way to his encampment. To
this we all assented.

During the ride forward the old shaikh kept close to me, narrating
incidents of his life,--such as his last year's losses by the Beni
Sukh'r, who plundered him of all his flocks and herds, horses, tents, and
even most of his clothing,--then described the march of Ibrahim Pasha's
army in their disastrous attempt upon Kerak: also some of the valiant
achievements of his kinsman Gublan; and then proceeding to witticism,
gave me his etymological origin of the name of Hhesban--namely, that, on
the subsiding of the great deluge, the first object that Noah perceived
was that castle, perched as it is upon a lofty peak; whereupon he
exclaimed, _Hhus'n ban_--"a castle appears!" I wish I could recollect
more of his tales.

After passing through romantic scenery of rocks and evergreen trees, at a
sudden turn of the road we came to large flocks and herds drinking, or
couched beside a copious stream of water gushing from near the foot of a
rocky hill. This they called _'Ain Hhesban_; and told us that the
Egyptian army above alluded to, twenty thousand in number, passed the
night there before arriving at Kerak. To many of them it was their last
night on earth.

There were remains of large masonry lying about, and the scene was truly
beautiful--to which the bells of the goats and cows added a charming
musical effect.

I asked an Arab, who was bathing in a pool, where he had come from, and
he sulkily answered, "From t'other end of the world!" And I suppose he
was right in saying so, for what meaning could he attach to the
designation, _the world_. He must have meant the world of his own
experience, or that of his tribe, or his parents--probab