A Bedouin Arab does not give his hand in marriage, but his foot. The Sheik blesses his people once a year. He springs from his balcony, and when he has reached the centre of the populace, he gives his blessing, so that he may fall equally on the heads of all his subjects; and then he springs back to his balcony, and the ceremony is concluded. One poor Sheik (Ben Allah Wishi Washi) had the gout, and could not do this. He tried to bless them in a balloon once, but the enraged populace would not have it, and tore it to pieces, amid loud cries of "Shame!" He was sentenced to wear tight boots for life—the most ignominious punishment that can be put upon one of Bedouin extraction. Their postmen are let off from the post-office like pigeons—they drop the letters down the chimneys. [Illustration: A BEDOUIN VESTRY MEETING. Chairman—"Sons of Allah, the meeting is now up." ] A meeting is adjourned very primitively. The chairman lifts his leg, and the whole meeting suddenly takes to its heels and springs into the air, like so many thousand frogs, and the next minute there is not one left. Their dances are very lively. They generally take place in the open air, or else if they danced in a room, they would be knocking their heads every minute against the ceiling. To see them all take the same leap simultaneously, and _balancezing_ some fifty feet above the earth, is something so extraordinary, that it almost lifts you off your feet. No less extraordinary are their ballets. They are more like fire-works than any other exhibition; and you hear the loud exclamations of "O—o—h" escape from the crowd, when a _première danseuse_ takes a higher flight than usual. Their _grand pas_ are always watched through long telescopes, which are let out at the doors for six piastres a night. A Bedouin duel will sometimes last for days, for it is always the object of the person who is to be shot to get out of the fire of his adversary, and thus they will go on jumping after one another over the whole kingdom for a week together. Nurses toss their babies up in the air, and if they are slow in coming down, they jump up after them and fetch them. I have heard of a game of _écarté_ being played, _à vol d'aigle_, some 15,000 feet above the level of the sea. The great dodge is to prevent your partner jumping up behind you to look over your cards. Bedouin Royalty does not wear a crown, but a pair of spring-heeled jack-boots, and it is high treason for any one but the Sheik to put his foot into it. The Bedouin Arabs are a cheerful people—their active life leads them to be hilarious. They are early risers, and are generally up with the lark. They are a volatile, but happy race; and it is very rarely you hear of a Bedouin Arab having corns. He will take up a bill, too, quicker than any man. [Illustration: A BEDOUIN BAILIFF. ] * * * * *