The scattered herbage
also assumed regular forms--squares, ovals, circles. Now and then it
seemed as if vast ruins were ahead, but as we drew nigh these dwindled
into little desert-mosques, formed of half-circles of stones, now turned
to the east, now to the west. Here the faithful who may be obliged to
traverse these dreary regions stop to offer up their simple prayer to
the Almighty Allah, to whom, they say, the dreadful Hamadah belongs.
The extent of this plateau from north to south, varying in our route
from S.E. to S.W., is about 156 miles, or six long and seven short days'
journey. Sometimes our camels went at the pace of three miles, but
nearly always of two and a-half miles in the hour. It is almost
impossible to make the traverse in less than fifty-six or sixty hours.
The camels may continue on night and day, but it will always require so
much time to make the weary journey, which is considered the greatest
exploit of Saharan travelling in this portion of Northern Africa.
On the road to Tuat from Algeria, or to Ghadamez from Tunis and Tripoli,
or to Fezzan from Bonjem or Benioleed, there is no traverse of six days
comparable in difficulty to that which we have just accomplished. There
is said to be none other like it on the road to Soudan, except a
tremendous desert between Ghat and Aheer. However, we must not trouble
ourselves about this as yet.
As for the Hamadah, we know that near Sokna the plateau breaks up and
forms what are called the Jebel-es-Soudy, or Black Mountains, a most
picturesque group of cliffs; and again on the route to Egypt from
Mourzuk, six days' journey south-east from Sokna, it also breaks into
huge cliffs, and bears the name of El-Harouj.
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