« I wondered at the warmth of their greetings. The old man lowered himself upon the rug they had spread for him, and ate the dates they set before him, while they hurried to blow up a fire and to make coffee… I thought, ‘…He looks like a proper old beggar. I bet he asks for something.’Later in the evening he did and I gave him five riyals, but by then I had changed my opinion. Bin Kabina said to me: ‘…Once he was one of the richest men in the tribe, now he has nothing except a few goats.’ I asked: ‘What happened to his camels? Did raiders take them, or did they die from disease?‘ and Bin Kabina answered, ‘No. His generosity ruined him. No one ever came to his tent but he killed a camel to feed them. By God, he is generous!’«
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« Arabian Sands », Wilfred Thesiger, Penguin Classics