" They swore they had none--not a grain; but
when we swore in our turn that we would pay them for what we wanted,
they admitted having a little that belonged to some people in Fezzan. I
was amused with the eloquent indignation of our burly chaouch when they
professed complete destitution at first. "You dogs! do you live on
stones?" cried he. This was a settler; and showed them that they had
knowing ones to deal with. Of course their original shyness arose from
fear lest we might rob them. When a bargain was struck they became quite
friendly, and brought us out some oil, barley-cakes, and boiled
eggs--all the luxuries of the oasis!
Ghareeah Gharbeeah stands on the brow of a limestone rock, on the
western side of a valley, which we had to cross in approaching between
date plantations and a few fields of barley. It was an ancient Roman
city; and there remains still an almost perfect bas-relief of a Victoria
on one side of the eastern gateway, which is composed of limestone
blocks a foot and a half square. We could trace also the imperfect
letters of a Latin inscription, together with some Berber characters.
The houses of the present inhabitants are formed of rough blocks of
limestone mixed with mud, and roofed with palm-trunks and palm-trees.
The water resembles that of the well of Tabooneeah, coming "from the
same rock," as the people say: it is slightly bitter and saltish.
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