SIGN OF ANGER.

ACTS xxii. 23.

"They cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air."

"The reis, who was the foremost of the (angry) party, in feigned paroxysms of anger, threw the sand up in his face, where the perspiration caused it to stick."-Irby and Mangles, pp. 74, 75.

PREPARATIONS FOR AN EASTERN JOURNEY-ARAB TRAVELLINGCAMEL'S FURNITURE-VEHICLES-BELLS WORN BY HORSESRIDING A TOKEN OF RANK-MANNER OF RIDING-RUNNING FOOTMEN-GUIDES ROADS, WAYMARKS, ETC.- NARROW PATHS-MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES-ARAB STAFF-RUNNERS OR POSTS.

PREPARATIONS FOR AN EASTERN JOURNEY.

THE preparations for a journey of some thirty days through the desert, occupied a good deal of time. A tent was to be purchased and fitted up; water-skins were to be procured and kept full of water, which was to be changed every day in order to extract the strong taste of the leather; provisions were to be laid in for a

whole month,...besides all the numerous smaller articles which are essential to the traveller's progress and health, even if he renounce all expectation of convenience and comfort....

We chose a large tent with a single pole. This was folded into two rolls, for which we had sacks; so that it was easily packed and loaded, and suffered little damage on the way. We had large pieces of painted canvass to spread upon the ground under our beds, and found these more convenient than poles or bedsteads; as the mattresses could be rolled up in them during the day, and thus be protected from dust or rain. At a later period, when we came to travel with horses and mules in Palestine, we left our mattresses behind, taking only blankets and other covering, which might by day be thrown over our saddles. Indeed, if he choose, the traveller can very well do without either bed or tent, provided he has cloaks and covering enough to protect him from the night chill. But to us it was important to keep a tolerably full record of our observations; and for this a tent and lights were necessary.

We had wooden boxes, like those of the Mecca pilgrims, for packing many of the articles; but afterwards abandoned them for small sacks and larger saddle-bags of hair-cloth, like those of the,Bedawîn. These proved to be more advantageous, as diminishing the bulk of the loads, and thus removing a source of expense, and a cause of grumbling among the camel-drivers and muleteers." -ROBINSON'S Researches, vol. i. pp. 49, 50.

"The camels were brought, and we prepared to cross the desert; but the tumult that ensued was such as to lead us to expect the consequences would be serious. The camels and men were all screaming at the full pitch of their voices, the narrow street was crowded with animals and Arabs, and cries and blows were resounding in every direction; it seemed like 'confusion worse confounded.' The Arabs can do nothing without noise, and it is the wisest method to leave them to their own

way, as in a little time they work themselves into quietness, and have all things ready for departure."-HARDY'S Notices, p. 29.

ARAB TRAVELLING.

See GENESIS, chapters xxxii. xxxiii.

The manner in which the Arabs travel affords a striking illustration of the way in which Jacob journeyed. Mr. Parsons, who travelled in the East a few years ago, thus described it :—

"First went the shepherds and goatherds, with the sheep and goats in regular flocks. Then followed the camels and asses, with the tents and furniture. Next came the old men and the women, with the boys and girls on foot. The little children were carried by the women, and the elder children carried the lambs and kids. Last of all came the masters of the families. Between each family there was a space of a hundred yards, or more; so that they did not mix or get confused with each other."

Dr. Buckingham mentions observing "an Arab party, consisting of about a dozen families, halting to pitch their tents in a beautiful little basin, which they had chosen for the place of their encampment, surrounded on three sides by woody hills. The sheikh was the only one of the whole who rode; the rest of the men walked on foot, as did most of the women also. The boys drove the flocks of sheep and goats; and the little children, the young lambs, the kids, and the poultry, were all carried in panniers or baskets across the camel's backs. The tents, with their cordage, and the mats, the cooking utensils, provisions, and furniture, were likewise laden upon these useful animals. As these halted at every five steps to pull a mouthful of leaves from the bushes, the progress of their march was very slow; but the patience of all seemed quite in harmony with the tardy movement of the camel, and it was evidently a matter of indifference to every one of the group, whether they halted at noon or at sunset, since an hour was time

enough for them to prepare their shelter for the night." -BUCKINGHAM'S Travels, vol. ii. p. 106.

CAMEL'S FURNITURE-VEHICLES.

GENESIS XXXi. 34.

"Now Rachael had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat upon them."

CANTICLES iii. 7, 10.

"Behold his bed, which is Solomon's; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel.... King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon. He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, &c."

The caparison of the animals for hire is not very splendid. Arab riding-saddles with stirrups are some