132 EXCURSIONS FROM NJEMPS part ii 



Pass in the twilight, and in the darkness scrambled over 

 ridges, and forced our way through the thorn scrub down to 

 the northern shore of the lake, I fired a signal-shot, and the 

 reply guided us into camp. 



The remainder of this excursion was most delightful and 

 restful, at least mentally, for Lomweri and I did our twelve 

 hours' walking every day. There were no natives to worry us, 

 and the men were so ashamed of their part in the row that 

 they did their work without a grumble. Wild duck were 

 abundant ; I had therefore no trouble about the commis- 

 sariat, as I often brought down ten at once, with a right and 

 left. The absence of vegetable food was unwholesome, but the 

 ducks roasted on spits over the fire were simply delicious. 



The scenery, too, was most charming. A view of Elgeyo 

 would occasionally suggest doubts as to how things were going 

 up there, but thinking about this could do no good until our 

 return to Njemps ; so the subject was resolutely kept in the 

 background, and not allowed to disturb my enjoyment of the 

 ever -varying panorama of quiet bays and rocky headlands. 

 The northern shore of the lake is especially picturesque ; for 

 the lava sheets that form it have been broken by faults into 

 a series of troughs with vertical walls, arranged as regularly as 

 if they had been drawn with a parallel ruler. The summits 

 of the ridges and the floors of the valley are flat, and slope 

 gently southward toward the lake ; in this, the former end 

 either abruptly as cliff-bounded promontories, or as jagged ribs 

 of rock continued by lines of islets. The ground is covered 

 with rich green turf, studded with gorgeous meadow flowers, 

 while here and there are patches of scrub. The shrubs of 

 which these consist are not dreary, spine - leaved acacias, 

 but are clumps of Dombeya, with masses of dense green 

 foliage glowing with an outer crust of brilliant yellow bloom ; 

 there is the willow-like Lelesha {TarcJionanthes cavip/ioratus), 

 which, like the olive, when the silver gray of the under sides of 

 the leaves is seen, as the branches sway on the breeze, " turn 

 all hoary to the wind," Where the valleys reach the shore- 

 line they form bays fringed by dense growths of reeds, rushes, 

 and papyrus, and containing acres of the light green cabbage- 

 like rosettes of Pistia stratiotes, amid which rise the bright 

 blue flowers of the Lotus. In the open waters beyond sport 



