xxi AFRICAN ANTELOPES 341 



its destructive course, leaving the blackened ground behind as 

 clean as a velvet pall. 



An immense extent of country may be cleared within a few 

 days, if the grass is carefully ignited to windward, and it is a 

 mystery how the wild animals arrange their retreat before the 

 annual conflagration. I imagine that they are well aware of 

 certain places of refuge in the dry beds of rivers, where the experi- 

 ence of the past has assured them of security. At any rate, they 

 save themselves, and reappear upon the scene within a very few 

 days after the fire has destroyed all pasturage. This is the time 

 for the hunter, as all animals are driven to the broad beds of 

 streams, where green herbage is always to be found throughout 

 the driest months. The borders of such rivers are generally 

 fringed with nabbuk, and the antelopes are attracted by the small 

 fruit, like miniature apples, which fall to the ground in quantities. 



By degrees the wind cleans the ashes from the surface, and 

 although the jungles are in a leafless condition, as bare as our 

 English woods in winter, a change takes place. The different 

 gum-bearing mimosas, that have been scorched by the recent fire, 

 exude their sap through the heat -contracted bark. There are 

 several varieties which produce gum-arabic, but the most valuable 

 is that of a tree which is armed with a double-hooked thorn in 

 reverse. It is simply impossible to escape without assistance 

 when caught in this entanglement, if your clothes are strong 

 enough to hold without giving way. 



The best gum-arabic is found in Kordofan ; also in the country 

 from the base of the Abyssinian range of mountains to the river 

 Atbara. In some portions of this extensive district, where the 

 best quality is produced in quantities, there are no inhabitants to 

 gather it, as there is a considerable area uninhabited, owing to the 

 insecurity of life in the absence of a firm government. I have 

 seen crops of this valuable gum in such profusion that the naked 

 trees were ornamented with transparent fruits resembling small 

 candied oranges. These were semi-transparent, adhering to the 

 stems and branches, so brilliant in their golden frosty surface that 

 they became most attractive ; I could not help dismounting, and 

 collecting as much as I could carry. It has frequently occurred 

 to me, when among such scenes, that the old story of the garden of 

 jewels in Alladin and the Wonderful Lamp originated in travellers' 

 accounts concerning the mimosas laden with this topaz-coloured 

 gum. 



It is sweet and agreeable to the taste when freshly gathered 

 from the tree ; the outside is hard, but the centre contains liquid 



