516 The last Journal of W. A. Forbes. 



stone, said by Macintosh to be very clayey. About noon got 

 to Egbagij a factory on left bank. Afterwards the banks are 

 low and grassy, with the flat hills still in distance when 

 Tisible. About 5 ofi' Kaduna river, and took a photograph 

 of left bank covered with bush. Saw lots of Hornbills in 

 evening, apparently of two species, a Toccus and Buceros 

 atratus ( ? ?), flying high in air to resting-places. 



S. Oct. 1st. Got aground twice in morning, and ' Jessie' 

 got damaged. Distant hills on left bank still quite flat- 

 topped ; banks low and grassy. Hills recede going up river, 

 and only seen on horizon. Banks alternate with grass and 

 thick bushy (low) forests, with oil and a flabelliform palm ; 

 the latter more in grassy lands, and has a fusiform stem. 

 About 4 P.M. got toTchunga creek, on right bank of river; very 

 narrow. Just before entering saw a single fine Cercopithecus 

 mona in trees. A good number of birds in Tchunga creek, 

 including Plotus, a nearly uniform brown-grey Schizorhis 

 (? concolor), lighter beneath and with yellow bill (three in a 

 tree), the smallish black-capped orange-legged Butorides. 

 Shot a large Owl from ship {vide description at end of 

 Hartlaub) as we were anchored for night two-thirds way up 

 to Tchunga. 



Oct. 2nd. Started at 10 in ' Jessie,' with Macintosh, 

 Lever, and Flint, for Rabba. Saw three Balearica in main 

 river. Got to Rabba about 3. Factory in ruins, and town 

 almost deserted. Strolled up river a short way. The surface 

 is river-gravel, derived from a metamorphic (?) fine-grained 

 sandstone conglomerate, generally with rounded quartz- 

 pebbles, only occasionally angular. 



Oct. 3rd. Left Rabba about 5, and got down to Massaba 

 by 8. The country is low, except about Rabba (left bank), 

 generally grass-covered, with scanty dwarfed-looking trees 

 scattered about or in clumps. Plotus abundant in creek, 

 and saw several other birds coming down, including an 

 Ardetta, Metopidius (in creek), Balearica, a brown Ibis 

 (? Ibis hagedash), a pair of blue- winged red-beaked Halcyon, 

 and a large black-and-white Ceryle, also a blue-green Necta- 

 rinia with long tail ; these two last from Massaba. A large 



