ttle to the east of Shabwa, the ancient capital, now half buried in
the advancing sand, and for a distance of over 70 m. a succession of
villages and towns surrounded by fields and date groves extends along
the main valley and into the tributaries which join it from the south.
Shibam, Saiyun and Tarim are towns of 6000 or more inhabitants, and
Hajren and Haura in the W. Duwan are among the larger villages.
Himyaritic remains have been found here and in the W. Mefat which
enters the Gulf of Aden near Balhaf. A few small fishing villages or
ports are scattered along the coast, but except Mukalla and Shihr none
is of any importance.

The Gara coast was visited by the Bents, who went inland from Dhafar,
one of the centres of the old frankincense trade, to the crest of the
plateau. The narrow coastal strip seems to be moderately fertile, and
the hills which in places come down to the seashore are covered with
trees, among which the frankincense and other gum-bearing trees are
found. On the plateau, which has an altitude of 4000 ft., there is
good pasturage; inland the country slopes gently to a broad valley
beyond which the view was bounded by the level horizon of the desert.

Oman.

Oman (q.v.) includes all the south-eastern corner of the peninsula.
Its chief feature is the lofty range of J. Akhdar, 10,000 ft. above
sea-level. Like the great range of western Arabia, it runs parallel to
the coast; it differs, however, from the western range in that its
fall on the landward side is as abrupt and nearly as great as on its
seaward side. Its northern extremity, Ras Musandan, rises
precipitously from the straits of Hormuz; farther south the range
curves inland somewhat, leaving a narrow but fertile strip, known as
the Batina coast, between it and the sea, and containing several
populous towns and villages of which Sohar, Barka and Sib are the
chief. Muscat, the capital of the province and the principal port on
the coast, is surrounded on three sides by bare, rocky hills, and has
the reputation of being the hottest place in Arabia. Zwemer says the
fertility of the highland region of J. Akhdar is wonderful and is in
striking contrast to the barrenness of so much of the coast; water
issues in perennial springs from many rocky clefts, and is carefully
husbanded by the ingenuity of the people; underground channels, known
here as _faluj_, precisely similar to