accompany them and accept their hospitality for the night.  They are travelling toward a large area of walled orchards but a short distance to the north, and I naturally expect to find their village located among them; so, not knowing how far ahead the next village may be, I gladly accept their kindly invitation, and follow along behind.  It gets dusky, then duskier, then dark; the stars come peeping out thicker and thicker, and still I am trundling with these people slowly along up the dry and stone-strewn channel of spring-time freshets, expecting every minute to reach their village, only to be as often disappointed, for over an hour, during which we travel out of my proper course perhaps four miles.  Finally, after crossing several little streams, or rather; one stream several times, we arrive at our destination, and I am installed, as the guest of a leading villager, beneath a sort of open porch attached to the house.  Here, as usual, I quickly become the centre of attraction for a wondering and admiring audience of half-naked villagers.  The villager whose guest I become brings forth bread and cheese, some bring me grapes, others newly gathered almonds, and then they squat around in the dim religious light of primitive grease-lamps and watch me feed, with the same wondering interest and the same unconcealed delight with which youthful Londoners at the Zoological Gardens regard a pet monkey devouring their offerings of nuts and ginger-snaps.  I scarcely know what to make of these particular villagers; they seem strangely childlike and unsophisticated, and moreover, perfectly delighted at my unexpected presence in their midst.  It is doubtful whether their unimportant little village among the foothills was ever before visited by a Ferenghi; consequently I am to them a rara avis to be petted and admired.  I am inclined to think them a village of Yezeeds or devilworshippers; the Yezeeds believe that Allah, being by nature kind and merciful, would not injure anybody under any circumstances, consequently there is nothing to be gained by worshipping him.  Sheitan (Satan), on the contrary, has both the power and the inclination to do people harm, therefore they think it politic to cultivate his good-will and to pursue a policy of conciliation toward him by worshipping him and revering his name.  Thus they treat the name of Satan with even greater reverence than Christians and Mohammedans treat the name of God.  Independent of their hospitable treatment of myself, these villagers seem but little advanced in their personal habits above mere animals; the women are half-naked, and seem possessed of little more sense of shame than our original ancestors before the fall.  There is great talk of kardash among them in reference to myself.  They are advocating hospitality of a nature altogether too profound for the consideration of a modest and discriminating Ferenghi — hospitable intentions that I deem it advisable to dissipate at once by affecting deep, dense ignorance of what they are discussing.