'Southern Nejd: Journey to Kharj, Aflaj, Sulaiyyil, and Wadi Dawasir in 1918.' [‎14v] (33/100)

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20 —
the Sahaba drainage system on the north and a vast number of
streams draining the slopes of the Tuwaiq and eventually collect
ing at some point south of the Aflaj settlements in the Ghail
channel to flow south-east into the Biyadh, slopes gently south
ward and extends twenty miles from north to south and perhaps
rather more from west to east between the Tuwaiq and the
Biyadh. The northern part of the plateau is almost level and
absolutely smooth and bare; but as one proceeds south it becomes
more broken up by the passage of Shaibs and eventually it ends
in a series of switchback ridges. Our march, interrupted by
a halt for the night in a small nameless Shaib, ran practically
due south to the end of the plateau, the more important channels
crossed during the following day being Shaib Daiya, Shaib
Shitab, Shaib Ghina, and Shaib Alars, the last of which contain
ing some rough shallow wells of excellent water called Mishash
al Ars. A bare mile beyond these wells the plateau, now about
2,100 feet above sea-level, ends abruptly at the edge of the
Aflaj plain, in which the palms of Umm Shinadhir and Wusaila
could be seen not far distant to the south-east. At this point
the edge of the Tuwaiq plateau projects eastward to within
about two miles of the road turning thence in a WSW. direction
along the western boundary of the Aflaj plain, which is separated
on the north-east from the distant rim of the Biyadh upland
by a broad tongue of the Rajd plateau running south-east
until it finally merges in the Biyadh itself.
Descending from the plateau we reached the twin villages
of Umm Shinadhir and W usaila after a march of five miles,
at first across a broad, bushy depression running down from the
edge of the Tuwaiq along the foot of the Rajd, and thereafter
over a flat plain of loam with occasional patches of low sand dunes.
The following day (May 14) brought us to Laila, where we spent
May 15 and 16 visiting the various oases in its neighbourhood.
On May 17 we marched by a circuitous route to Badia, where
the following day was spent in excursions into the surrounding
country, and finally on May 19 we passed out of the Aflaj plain.
As in the case of Kharj it will be more convenient to deal with
the district as a whole than to describe my route in detail.
. , ^ 1l J j a ^ ow words regarding Palgrave's claim to have
pai a }ing visit to Aflaj in the course of his peregrinations in
Arabia in 1862-^ claim, which must now after the lapse of over
ty years be dismissed as an impudent attempt at imposture
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