Visit to Somaliland. 385 



Mr. Danbar is a young Scotchman of barely twenty summers, 

 full of enthusiasm. 



Aylmer and Gillett returned late, having had a long and 

 fatiguing day ; their expedition, however, had been most 

 successful, for not only had tbey discovered, on the west side, 

 an easier way up than that by which Aylmer had made his 

 first ascent in 1895, but they had also brought back some rare 

 botanical specimens, one of which has proved to be unknown 

 to science. The next day we sent the camels on, giving Egga 

 orders to camp at Gello-kur, while we ourselves, as the march 

 was a short one, lingered at Bihen and had luncheon under 

 the big fig-tree. On arriving at Gello-icur we did not see 

 the tents, but were surprised to find the little valley choked 

 with a jungle of castor-oil plants, quite tall enough to 

 have hidden a herd of elephants, had any been there. We 

 thought this most extraordinary, for, though the castor-oil 

 plant is far from uncommon, we had previously only noticed 

 them dotted about singly among other bushes, while here was 

 seemingly a regular plantation of them, and on ground where 

 there were certainly very few, if any, when last we camped 

 here. Curiously enough, the natives are quite ignorant of the 

 virtues of this most useful plant in its rough state, but were 

 loud in their praises of the manufactured article, of which 

 we had a good supply. Much as we should have liked to 

 have dawdled here with gun and net, we were obliged to 

 push on, as it was uncertain where we should find the tents 

 and it was already late, so we left Gello-kur (Place of the 

 Little Bustard) for the second time with many regrets. 

 We found the tents pitched on a bare and unattractive- 

 looking spot, which boasted of the charming name of Warra 

 Ballambal (the Plain of Butterflies), but the news which 

 greeted us was most alarming. Harwood's pony, on being 

 unsaddled, refused to go out to graze, and shortly after 

 dropped down dead, with a nasty glary discharge at the 

 nostrils. Everything pointed to glanders, and we were in 

 terror lest our other mounts should be carried ofi" in like 

 manner. We had the body dragged some way ofB to leeward 

 and hoped for the best. Very soon the hyaenas had discovered 



