The Great Sahara Author:Henry Baker Tristram Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. Preparations for travel Dragoman Tents Licence for arms Letters Advice of the governor A mulish baggage-horse Disastrous start... more » Fort 1'Empereur Orphelinat Dely Ibrahim Protestant institute Douera Interesting prisoners Bouffarick Successful colonization Beni Mered A valiant guard Mausoleum of the kings of Mauritania Lake Halloula Blidah Gorge of the Chiffa Scenery Monkeys Arab Gourbis Making game of a naturalist Meeting Bedouins Dog lost Taking an inn by stormCheap lodgings Mines of Mouza'ia Medeah Native review A Sheik's farewell of his son Eagerness for Parisian education. But we must not spend more time upon Algiers; our goal was the far desert, and October was approaching. Neither few nor simple are the difficulties that beset the traveller seeking an outfit in French Africa. Whatever is required by an officer for a Kabyle campaign, and is not supplied by the " Intendance Militaire," is to be had at once, but nothing more. Long and anxious were the discussions about those most important and indispensable of companions, our horses. The decision on them I prudently left to P., a better judge of horseflesh than myself. The next in importance, and the most difficult to secure, was a trusty dragoman. No such skilful and ready-witted desert couriers, if I may so term them, are to be found in Algiers as lounge in the Strada Eeale of Malta, or hang about the doorway of Shepherd's Hotel in Cairo. Travelling is not yet here reduced to a system, nor is it, with its few attractions, likely to be so for years to come. At length, through the land assistance of Mr. Elmore, H.B.M. Vice- Consul, to whom I can never sufficiently express myobligations for his valuable exertions, suggestions, and informatio...« less