Art. V.—Account of some Inscriptions found on the Southern Coast of Arabia. Communicated to the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, by the Government of Bombay

Extract

The accompanying Inscriptions were found in the neighbourhood of “Dees,” a Bedouin town, a few hours' distant from Ras Sherma, on the southern coast of Arabia.

The natives who came off to the ship, represented it as a populous well-cultivated district, abounding in vegetables and fruit of various descriptions. Having learned from these persons, that there were many ancient buildings, and some writing in a character unknown to the Arabs, we naturally felt an inclination to make a personal inspection of them; and to effect this with security, Captain Haines sent our pilot, a native of the place, on shore, to request the ruling Shaikh to grant us his firman, and a few Bedouin attendants. In reply, a letter was sent off, making a most exorbitant demand of money, rice, copper, and sundry other very useful articles, specifying the individual quantities with much nicety and precision, as the price of his protection: this, of course, was politely declined; and from a subsequent conversation with some of the party themselves, they appeared not only to regret the exercise of their cupidity, which had deprived them of, at least, a few presents from the ship, but seemed to be sensibly ashamed of a conduct so much at variance with the hospitable treatment we had universally met with, since leaving Maculla.