collected in Eastern Africa. 281 



song of an English Thrush or Blackbird. The entire absence 

 of singing-birds is most remarkable. Our journey now took 

 us over some lofty ranges^ the highest point being attained 

 at Dincha (10,020 feet), an old stockaded Galla town, at 

 present administered by Abyssinian generals, who showed 

 us unbounded hospitality, loading us with presents of every 

 kind. On March 5th we descended to the shores of Lake 

 Margarita (4212 feet), and camped in a charming situation. 



We now began to experience the full effects of the awful 

 drought, tlie whole country being desolate and devoid of 

 natives, while skeletons were strewn in all directions. On 

 the way to Lake Stefanie we obtained the handsome Northern 

 Giraffe, as well as some Ostriches, but our horror may be 

 imagined on finding that Lake Stefanie was perfectly dry. 

 Luckily we experienced some heavy thunderstorms, and were 

 thus enabled to push on to Lake Rudolf. March 29th was 

 a red-letter day, for we not oidy reached that lake, but 

 Butter killed a pure white Topi antelope, a most perfect 

 albino. It was wonderful luck to secure it out of the 

 thousands of animals congregated along the shores. Pushing 

 on to the Omo River, our hearts sank on finding the 

 mighty stream quite dry, and the bed covered with rich 

 green grass, which had sprung up during the recent heavy 

 showers. This settled the question of our attempting to 

 reach the Nile, as, of course, the Sobat would be equally 

 dry; so after hoisting a boundary-flag near Murle, we sadly 

 turned our faces southwards to begin the long trek of over 

 500 miles which we had to face before we could strike the 

 Uganda railway. We found birds very scarce, the country 

 all along the eastern shore of the lake being flat and parched; 

 and as the only vegetation consisted of a few stunted bushes, 

 we hardly ever got any shade under which to pitch our tents, 

 while the heat was most oppressive. 



On April 21st, after leaving our first camp at the south 

 end of Lake Rudolf, I shot two small Finch-Larks, which 

 proved to be of a new species [Pyrrhulauda harrisoni) . The 

 ground where I shot them was a mass of rocks, at an elevation 

 of about 1800 feet. On May 11th we emerged on the old 

 trade I'oute to Uganda. It is hard to describe our feelings 

 at being once more on a good road with bridges over all the 



