288 LIFE WITH THE HAMRAN ARABS. 



and arrowroot. He is looking forward to our arrival at 

 Kassala to get at our stores of Lehman's captains' 

 biscuits, for which he has a great fancy, and they 

 certainly are an improvement upon the more common 

 kind left in our present supplies, though these are quite 

 good enough for all practical purposes. Our supply of 

 rice holds out well, and the goats show but a slight 

 falling off. 



This evening some heavy thunder-clouds passed 

 over our heads from the east, and there was a slight 

 shower of rain (the first we have had here), followed by 

 a short but sharp hurricane, which required the united 

 efforts of some of our party to save our tent from 

 being carried away bodily. Now that it has passed 

 over, we derive some advantage from our unwelcome 

 guest, for it has made the air feel less oppressive. 



April 17. Owing to the illness of Albert, we were 

 obliged to postpone our departure for Emberaga until 

 to-day, and he has stood the journey better than we 

 might have expected. I hope now that he will soon 

 rally, but he seems to have so completely lost all power 

 of rousing himself that I fear he will not shake off the 

 effects of this attack for a long time after our separa- 

 tion at Cairo. Essafi, after a great chase en route, caught 

 a young baboon, and all his time has been taken up 

 this afternoon watching him, koorbatch in hand, to pre- 

 vent him biting through the rope by which he was half 



