Some of them were
nearly naked, having only a piece of leather round their loins. Our
sending for an escort from Mourzuk seems to have aroused the whole
country; all these poor wretches expected, at least, a little _hamsa_
from the Christians, who were reported to have a long train of camels
laden with gold and silver, and all sorts of rich goods. I do not doubt
the correctness of this news; it is so perfectly Targhee in its kind:
but the report of sixty maharees pursuing us from the Haghar desert was
always doubted by me.
There is now news of my stolen tea, and a chance of my getting some of
it back again, the robbers confessing to their friends that they do not
know what to do with such "_herbage_," as they call it: it is quite
useless to them.
The Kailouees and Tuaricks generally do not like beards, and cut off the
hair of the upper lip quite close. Indeed, wearing as they do the
thilem, the beard and the mustachios are completely hidden. The
Kailouees leave the crown of the head, which is close shaved, as in the
case of the Mahommedans of the coast, quite bare, exposed to the sun and
weather. Around the lower part of the head they wind a long narrow strip
of black cotton stuff (called _rouanee_ in Soudanee), which is continued
round the face, upper and lower part, and forms the thilem, only about
an inch breadth of the face being exposed or visible; that is, the
portion including the eyes and bridge of the nose.
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