372 UGANDA [ch. xiii 



went on without a break hour after hour. The natives 

 looked well and were dressed well ; the men in long 

 flowing garments of white, the women usually in brown 

 cloth made in the old native style out of the bark of the 

 bark cloth tree. The clothes of the chiefs were taste- 

 fully ornamented. All the people, gentle and simple, 

 were very polite and ceremonious both to one another 

 and to strangers. Now and then we met parties of 

 Sikh soldiers, tall, bearded, fine-looking men with 

 turbans ; and there were Indian and Swahili, and even 

 Arab and Persian, traders. 



The houses had mud walls and thatched roofs. The 

 gardens were surrounded by braided cane fences. In 

 the gardens and along the streets were many trees ; 

 among them bark cloth trees, from which the bark is 

 stripped every year for cloth ; great incense trees, the 

 sweet-scented gum oozing through wounds in the bark ; 

 the date palms, in the fronds of which hung the nests of 

 the golden weaver-birds, now breeding. White cow 

 herons, tamer than barnyard fowls, accompanied the 

 cattle, perching on their backs, or walking beside them. 

 Beautiful Kavirondo cranes came familiarly round the 

 houses. It was all strange and attractive. Birds sang 

 everywhere. The air was heavy with the fragrance of 

 flowers of niany colours ; the whole place was a riot of 

 lush growing plants. Every day there were terrific 

 thunderstorms. At Kampalla three men had been 

 killed by lightning within six weeks ; a year or two 

 before our host, Knowles, had been struck by lightning 

 and knocked senseless, a hugh zigzag mark being left 

 across his body, and the links of his gold watchchain 

 being fused ; it was many months before he completely 

 recovered. 



Knowles arranged a situtunga hunt for us. The 



