importance that I was not disposed to concede without knowing
more about him. I suppose an Arab feels the same sensation when
a Westerner lords it over him on highly moral grounds. At any
rate, something or other in the way of pique urged me to stir him
out of his self-complacency, just as one feels urged to prod a
bull-frog to watch him jump.

He seemed to understand my remarks, for he took no trouble to
hide his amusement at my efforts with the language. But he
only answered in monosyllables, and I could not understand
those. So after about five minutes I gave it up, and crossed
the room to ben Nazir, who seized the opportunity to show me
my sleeping-quarters.

It proved to be a room like a monastery cell, up one flight of
stone steps, with two other rooms of about the same size on
either side of it. At the end of the passage was a very heavy
wooden door, with an iron lock and an enormous keyhole, which I
suppose shut off the harem from the rest of the house; but as I
never trespassed beyond it I don't know. I only do know that a
woman's eye was watching me through that key-hole, and ben Nazir
frowned impatiently at the sound of female giggling.

"The Sheikh Anazeh will have the room on this side of you," he
said, "and the Sheikh Suliman ben Saoud the room on the other.
So you will be between friends."

"Suliman ben Saoud seems a difficult person to make friends
with," I answered.