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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [16] (20/542)
The record is made up of 1 volume (271 folios). It was created in 1917. It was written in English and Arabic. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
16
METHODS OF TRANSPORT
the camel. According to Doughty, a horse in summer will drink
one-third more than a camel, and the carriage of water for it on
a l on g journey becomes a serious impediment. Food is hardly less
troublesome, though with the nomad tribes the difficulty is over
come by providing the Sheikh's mare with a foster-camel, on the
milk of which she lives when other food is not to be obtained. For
these reasons the horse is an expensive possession, and is not owned
by poor men. Arab horses are entire, and mares are preferred for
riding. As a rule, the Bedouin rides either bare-back, or on a pad
with a slender girth, guiding his mount with a halter only ; the bit
is unknown in the desert, and hoofs are commonly left unshod.
But on the Syrian borders even Bedouin sheikhs will ride with
a Damascus saddle and stirrups, using the sharp Syrian bit; they
will also shoe their mares, purchasing their yearly provision of
horseshoes in the Hajj market at Damascus. Even in the Sa'ud
country, Doughty observed nomads' horses shod.
More important for transport purposes is the ass, which is patient
of thirst and need only be watered every second day. The Sulubba
have no other beasts, yet cross with impunity waterless regions
which the Bedouins with their dhulul do not lightly pass. Asses
are said to stand the sharp stones of harrah desert better than
camels, and for short routes of about forty miles may render useful
service; a European traveller rode one between Hofuf and 'Oqair
(see Route No. 11). In towns and villages donkeys are numerous
and are commonly ridden in the large oases ; some kinds, such as the
white breeds of Hasa and Mecca, have a more than local reputation.
It has been stated, on exceptionally good local authority, that the
good Mecca donkey can go from Jiddah to Mecca (50 miles at least)
in from six to seven hours, whereas an envoy from Ruweis, mounted
on a good dhelul, in 1916 took nine hours for practically the same
distance, from Ruweis (4 miles N. of Jiddah) to Mecca. The mule
is less frequently seen than the ass. Mules carried litters on the
pilgrims route from Damascus in 1876, and were observed raising
water on the same route, yoked to the duldb or well-machine.
• The Camel Trade of Arabia
The camel-breeding tribes in Arabia are as follows :
In the North, the Ruweilah, Fed'an, 'Amarat, and Siba'. These
tour Anazah tribes are by far the most famous breeders, and their
nerds are larger than those of any other part of the desert. The
Huweitat rear camels, but in smaller numbers.
Shammar of the Jezirah (Mesopotamia) are poor in camels.
About this item
- Content
This volume is A Handbook of Arabia, Volume II, Routes (Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Department: May, 1917) and contains details on routes in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as information on transport and lines of communication arranged on a geographical basis. Chapters concerning meteorological information, hygiene and disease, and vocabularies have also been incorporated. The volume was prepared on behalf of the Admiralty and the War Office. The sources from which the routes have been compiled, together with notes on directions and distance, appear at the head of each chapter, while some sections have been compiled on the basis of native information. Authorities cited include: George August Wallin, William Gifford Palgrave, Carlo Claudio Camillo Guarmani, Lady Anne Blunt, Charles Huber, Julius Euting, Gerard Leachman, Gertrude Bell, Anders Christian Barclay Raunkiær, William Henry Irvine Shakespear, and John Gordon Lorimer.
The volume includes a note on confidentiality, title page, and a 'Note' on the compilation of the volume. There is a page of 'Contents' that includes the following sections:
- Chapter 1: Methods of Transport;
- Chapter 2: Communications, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
- Chapter 3: Routes, A. Northern Routes, B. Eastern Routes, C. Central Routes, D. Western Routes, E. South-Western Routes, F. Southern Routes, G. Souther-Eastern Routes;
- Chapter 4: Meteorological Observations;
- Chapter 5: Hygiene and Disease;
- Chapter 6: Vocabularies;
- Appendix: Note on the System of Transliteration and Glossary of Topographical and Common Terms;
- Index;
- Plates.
There is also a 'List of Maps' and a 'Note on the Spelling of Proper Terms'.
There is one map contained in this volume: 'Map 5. Key Map of Routes'. In addition, there are nine plates by Douglas Carruthers, Captain William Henry Irvine Shakespear, Captain Gerard Leachman, and Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Barrett Miles.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (271 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged in chapters. There is a contents page, list of maps, alphabetical index, and list of plates.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio. It begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the map which is inserted at the back of the volume, on number 271.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917' [16] (20/542), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/E84/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023896534.0x000016> [accessed 21 December 2024]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/20/E84/2
- Title
- 'Handbook of Arabia. Vol II. 1917'
- Pages
- front, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1:534, ii-r:ii-v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence