The distance of the "Hammam Bluffs" prevented my
visiting them, which circumstance I regretted the less as they have
been described by pens equal to the task.
That evening we enjoyed ourselves upon clean sand, whose surface,
drifted by the wind into small yellow waves, was easily converted by a
little digging and heaping up, into the coolest and most comfortable of
couches. Indeed, after the canescent heat of the day, and the tossing
of our ill-conditioned vessel, we should have been contented with
lodgings far less luxurious. Fuel was readily collected, and while some
bathed, others
[p.198] erected a hearth-three large stones and a hole open to
leeward-lit the fire and put the pot on to boil. Shaykh Nur had
fortunately a line; we had been successful in fishing; a little rice
also had been bought; with this boiled, and rock-cod broiled upon the
charcoal, we made a dinner that caused every one to forget the sore
grievance of "Mare's skin" and stone-hard biscuit. A few Maghrabis had
ventured on shore, the Rais having terrified the others by threatening
them with those "bogies," the Badawin-and they offered us
Kuskusu[FN#15] in exchange for fish. As evening fell, we determined,
before sleeping, to work upon their "morale" as effectually as we had
attacked their physique.
