CHAPTER VIII.

El-Jereed, the Country of Dates.--Its hard soil.--Salt Lake. Its vast extent.--Beautiful Palm-trees.--The Dates, a staple article of Food.-- Some Account of the Date-Palm.--Made of Culture.--Delicious Beverage.-- Tapping the Palm.--Meal formed from the Dates.--Baskets made of the Branches of the Tree.--Poetry of the Palm.--Its Irrigation.-- Palm-Groves.--Collection of Tribute by the "Bey of the Camp."