'Southern Nejd: Journey to Kharj, Aflaj, Sulaiyyil, and Wadi Dawasir in 1918.' [‎38r] (80/100)

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reaching a wide bulge of the valley, three miles on, in which we
halted for breakfast under a high ledge of rock called Abudidi
to which, it is related, worship and sacrifices were offered in the
days of the " Ignorance ", i.e. before the rise of Mohammed
ibn Abdul Wahhab.
Resuming our march we entered almost immediately
into the outskirts of G-hail, a three-mile stretch of well-irrigated
corn cultivation suffering badly from the effects of human
inertia and neglect and extending from here to the western
extremity of the actual oasis of that name.
The name Ghail appears to signify running water other
than seasonal floods, generally as in this case applied to scat
tered outcrops of a subterranean water supply which runs for
short distances until exhausted by irrigation or held up by
shallow hollows. Such outcrops are seldom perennial and
generally dwindle to nothing as the summer advances.
The oasis of Ghail, by far the most striking of the hill tract
and indeed surpassed by few in the plains, extends about two
miles down the valley in length with an average breadth of
half a mile between precipitous 100 foot cliffs, the whole space
between these limits being covered by a dense mass of palms
with a thick undergrowth of fruit trees and vegetables through
which the narrow storm channel pursues a tortuous course.
The eastern end of the oasis is completely closed in by a sharp
bend of the valley, at the head of which stands a tall watchtower.
A similar watchtower stands at the western extremity of the
oasis clear of the palms closed to a ruined fort of unusual size.
In the oasis itself are a number of scattered qasrs and three
hamlets namely A1 Amair, Badia, and Mishrif in that order
from west to east.
The first-named of these hamlets contains about 150 persons;
Badia, which lies in three sections along the left bank of the
storm channel opposite a short strip of running water about
half a mile long, contains 300, while Mishrif on the right bank
lower down consists of two sections containing perhaps 100
souls. The population of the outlying qasrs may number
some 150 in all, thus giving a total population for the oasis
of some 700 souls, the greater number of whom are miscellaneous
Beni Khadhir tenants dependent on the Bad wain owners of the
oasis, namely the Qubabina section of the Suhul, Hamiad ibn