Among the Shiah Moslems, whom we meet everywhere in East Arabia, the most common amulet is called _Nadi-Ali_. It consists generally of a lead or silver plate with little bells at the bottom, inscribed with these words: “Cry aloud to Ali; he is the possessor of wonders, From him you will find help from trouble. He takes away very quickly all grief and anxiety By the mission of Mohammed and his own sanctity.” There are innumerable cases where such amulets are used for the cure of disease. The native doctors firmly believe that when every remedy fails, the book of Allah, if properly administered, internally or externally, will drive away pain and cure the patient. The hospitals and book-shops and schools will doubtless in time drive out the use of amulets in Arabia, and the march of civilization, with its modern scientific miracles and spirit of investigation, is also a means to that end. Nevertheless, I have known of cases where printed Arabic gospels were bought to be used as amulets and where patients tried to rub off ink from the printed paper used to wrap powders in at the hospital, in order to drink the solution as a remedy. There are other things in Arabia which, though not amulets, will strike you as very strange. First there is the market basket, deftly woven out of palm leaves. When this is smeared with bitumen inside, it will hold water as well as an American pail or a bucket. The Arab broom is made of palm leaf fibre, with a short handle, and the dish cover below it is also made of palm fibre and rope, and is beautifully stained with colours, and when they bring in a dish of Hassa dates to entertain guests, such a cover is always put on to protect it from the flies. The sewing basket and the fan and the woman’s sandals are also very interesting. The men’s sandals, as well as the women’s sandals, have a peg or leather thong, which goes between the big toe and the one next to it, and by which they cling to their footgear in a way that would surprise you. Because the women’s slippers are made of wood, you can hear their footsteps when they are a great way off, and the clap-clap of the women’s sandals is a familiar sound to all of us here in Arabia. What do you think of their beautiful furniture? There are small tables used to hold water jars or trays of food, and folding bookstands cleverly made out of one piece of hard wood that fold up for a journey. Larger bookstands are made of date sticks and are strong enough to support a big volume of the Koran. The Arabs love to sit and swing back and forth as they chant its chapters. And lastly is something that looks very much like an amulet, but which is a traveller’s bag for bread and dates, often fastened to the camel saddle by leather thongs. Bread or dates kept in such a receptacle will keep moist for many, many hours in the hot, dry climate of Arabia.