Thurs. Jan. 1. 1914 [1 January 1914] Finished my work by 11.30, took a latitude and then the sun went in, leaving me workless. This morning in turning over a big stone, Nimran gave up saying to Salim and Ibrahim "Ya; we are no good for such work, there is no strength in us (holding out his slender wrists) We ride, we can do no other thing. Al Arab ma fi ilhum quwa." Note that Salli alla al Nebi is always an interruption of some one else. In addressing someone they will begin Ya Abu Jasim, yusikum bil khari, or allah yusallimak, while all sitting round the fire. Nuri is evidently in a state of mind about the project of a railway to Kaf. M. [Muhammad] has been assuring Nasir, his man, that there is nothing in it. I walked round the marsh after tea. Soft with evening, birds calling and a boy driving back the meagre horses singing. Grass and reeds and sabkha and deep pools with the fort rising black behind its palms. The talk round the camp fire particularly good tonight. Ali told a long tale of a ghazzu of the ahl al Shimal on the Sba' at Ga'rah where they took miri[?] and all the camels and hallal. Also of a ghazzu of the Sherarat on all the 'Anazeh right across to the Euphrates in the autumn when the Anarat camels were away in the desert and the 'Anazeh were as imprisoned in their gardens. The Sherarat sat at Thenail[?] and mopped[?] them all up. Then Nimran told of a raid with Ghalib when they were 4 days without food. Their sight wavered and one man seemed to another like a shadow. The ghazzu in Spring is good, but in the autumn you wd say I prefer the foe and death to this ghazzu. They carry scarcely anything to eat and eat grass in spring and what game they can find. 'Ali: What we have eaten tonight wd serve a man raiding for a month. Then Nimran: a tale of a Sherari on a mare. The Sherari have no horses, they ride on camels. 'Ali: A Sherari can't ride. One riding from here to the castle would fall off. Nimran. So when they saw the foe this mare delighted to see horses made for them and the Sherari could not stop her. The camel riders remained behind, but he dashed on, at the mare's will, she desiring the horses and split up the horsemen so that they turned and fled. When they came back the women aclamed [sic] him, but he said "Laud this mare, not me. For it was this mare who rushed on the horsemen." As I went up to the qasr today a small dirty ragged child was climbing up to the gate, singing, with a dry palm branch in his hand. Inside a very old man equally dirty and ragged was walking across the court leaning on a stick - at opposite ends of the same scale. A woman keeps telling me of a treasure which is to found in the qasr on a Friday.