The Sand-Dunes of the Desert 



of going on until it is quite dark, thereby tiring 

 their animals and floundering about in the black- 

 ness of night. It is far better to give the animals 

 a good feed, set out your sleeping kit, and sit 

 down to a well-cooked supper while there is 

 yet light. The day has been warm, with a cool 

 wind. Night fell calm and serene. 



Wednesday, 8th May. — Sunrise at 7.10 a.m. 

 We started a few minutes later, and reached 

 Steenkamps Puts (owner, Christian Leibenberg) 

 at 9.30 a.m. Here we spent an hour. A 

 splendid vlei of about three miles in extent. 

 Beautiful soil, brakish, moist and green with 

 ganna bush. What a chance for a few enter- 

 prising lads in the near neighbourhood to put 

 the whole of this land under corn ! Lucerne, 

 also, can withstand a fair amount of brak ; but 

 if the underground water comes too close to the 

 surface it will soon show signs of wet feet and 

 take on a yellowish tinge. In speaking of the 

 brak, I mentioned that sugar beets were excep- 

 tionally tolerant of brak. 



" Well," said a farmer, " I did not know that ; 

 but I have grown excellent crops of beets on 

 brak land." 



At 11 a.m. we outspanned for breakfast near 



27 



