( oxl ix ) 



83 had definite symptoms of plague, others doubtfully plague, 

 some probably anthrax. I have given about 750 inoculations, 

 but could only do 'contacts,' since the population is very 

 large and the vaccine very limited. 



" It's a most glorious country — the tail end of the Great 

 Rift Valley, with very little bush — nearly all a huge expanse 

 of undulating grass-land with a little bush in the hollows, 

 an escarpment each side (the valley being about 20 miles in 

 breadth) of about 300 feet, I suppose, with clumps of granite 

 rock cropping out along the top and here and there in the 

 valley. To the N.E. could always be seen a fine conical 

 peak rising, I suppose, about 3000 feet above the surrounding 

 country, called Amang (?why?) by the Germans, Nguruwe 

 by the natives of this part (Wanyaturu). It looks like a 

 volcano, and is marked on the map as being clothed with 

 primitive forest (ah-h-h ! ! !). But no chance of collecting- 

 there ! This is a very disappointing country for butterflies — 

 very few in species and individuals, but Synchloe is of interest, 

 as I haven't seen it since I caught it in the bottom of the 

 other rift (Kigezi !). But the paucity of butterflies is more 

 than compensated for by thousands of water and wading 

 birds congregated on shallow lakes which dry up in the dry 

 season. Alas ! I know so little about waders, but spotted 

 Avocets and Flamingoes ! I watched one of the latter feed- 

 ing — he put his head under water in the well-known inverted 

 position, and then proceeded to circle round his own head, 

 which he kept under water until he had made two revolu- 

 tions, then put it down again in the same spot and circled 

 round it twice more, stepping sideways with trampling move- 

 ments of his feet. I suppose this trampling squeezed out of 

 the mud minute organisms which he strains out of the water 

 like a whale. I could spend hours with glasses (and oh, for 

 a cinema camera !). The birds are so tame you can sit down 

 and watch them within 20 yards ! Flocks of Coots, so that 

 the water is black with them — which rather surprises me. 



"I expect to return to Dar es Salaam shortly, and then 

 get a month's local leave, and then have asked — mainly for 

 Lepidopterous purposes ! -to be sent to Portuguese East 

 Africa ! " 



