Preparing the Caravan. 31 



south along the White Nile. With this object in view we 

 decided to travel entirely by land, as being a more 

 thorough method of exploring the country, although 

 much slower and more fatiguing than travelling by 

 boat. Our task in Omdurman was to obtain permits 

 and servants, and animals to carry our baggage and our- 

 selves. At first we tried to buy camels, and several Arab 

 sheikhs were induced to make a parade of their beasts 

 before us. Feeling sure, however, that such camels as 

 were shown us would become the prey of dogs and 

 vultures after a day's march, we waived their owners 

 politely away. At this deadlock I learnt most oppor- 

 tunely that His Excellency the Sirdar, Sir Eeginald 

 Wingate, through the agency of Bimbashi F. G. Newall, 

 of the Intelligence Department at Omdurman, had most 

 kindly already hired baggage camels for me from the 

 sheikh who contracts to supply the Government. This 

 difficulty being thus pleasantly overcome we turned our 

 attention to procuring our own mounts. Good horses 

 and saddles were difficult to obtain, and to feed horses 

 in such a dry season would have been a difficult matter. 

 Riding-camels were expensive, and a doubtful luxury. 

 We, therefore, fell back upon donkeys. But the donkey 

 of the Soudan is a miserable little beast compared to 

 that of Egypt, and although our animals, bought after 



