10th.—­This morning I felt much better, as well as I have ever done since leaving Tripoli.  One adapts one’s self to any climate by degrees.  I took courage even to read a little, and went over Jackson’s “What to Observe,” among other things.  But my mind is still troubled about our future course of proceeding.  It is impossible to bring Sultan En-Noor to any arrangement.  He still shelters himself from our importunities under the plea of ill health.  Almost every morning we have a few visitors from the town.  The people are not troublesome, except that they show a good deal of prying curiosity to see the faces, forms, and actions of Christians.  We learn that scouts are still out after our camels, hitherto without success.  I am afraid they have been driven far away; and begin to doubt our ever setting eyes on them again.

The morning was clear and dry, with a little cool wind breathing up the valley.  The country was covered with fresh herbage; trees were budding and birds singing, as in spring.  Yesterday evening we had a visit from a wolf, who was looking out for our two or three sheep for a supper, but the watch was too well kept.  There are many wild animals in Aheer, but we have hitherto seen but few.  Very pretty doves fly about our tent; and Dr. Overweg shot some small birds to send home.

Aheer, in general, must be considered as a part of the Southern Sahara, or Great Desert.  Any country not producing periodic crops of grain, either by the annual rains or by irrigation, comes under this denomination here.  Aheer answers the description perfectly, although there are some exceptions.  Seloufeeat and Tintaghoda have annual crops of grain produced by irrigation.

I have obtained a list, such as it is, of the towns and villages surrounding Tintalous.  Seloufeeat and Tintaghoda are not mentioned, as they lay in our route to this place.  My informant declined to give any account of the numbers of the population, in all cases.[15]

 [15] He may have refused from superstitious motives.  Muslims are
      peculiarly sensitive on this subject.  In Egypt, Mohammed
      Ali encountered considerable passive resistance in his
      endeavours to procure a census.—­ED.

From Tintalous, as radii, are spread around the towns and villages of—­As[)a]ra, two hours west; As[)a]r[)a]ra, a place near Asoudee; Gh[)a]loulaf, four hours south; Asoudee, six hours south-south-west; T[)a]nous[)a]m[)a]t, two hours west (forty people); Agh[)o][)o][=o]u, two hours north (country of Escort En-Noor); T[)a]n[=a]s[)a]m[=a], four hours east (one family); Agh[)a]dez, six days south-west; Baghzem, two days south; Agh[)a]l[)a]gh, a few hours further south (fifty people); Bind[)a]ee, one hour and a-half east (no people); Teelaou, four hours east; Tegheda, a walk for shepherds, three hours west; Asoud[)a]r[)a]ka, five hours south (forty or fifty); Terken, seven hours west (not known); Time[)e][)a], four hours west (fifty,