KHARTOUM AND OMDURMAN 



305 



Nevertheless, though banished from the precincts of the 

 city, " Metallica" still clings to the deserts immediately 

 outside, wherever its beloved Sodom-apple (as well as 

 the thorny tundub-bush, Capparis aphylla) is allowed to 

 survive and flourish. 



Kites are almost a civic institution at Khartoum. All 

 day long- they, with other big birds of prey (vultures, 



SUNBIRDS (Nectarinia pulchella). ON BLOSSOM OF ERYTHRINA. 



eagles, and falcons), soar and circle amidst the palms, 

 and in the beautiful gardens of the Palace, kites become 

 well nigh a nuisance ; for they nest in every tree, coolly 

 conducting their parental duties in utter disrespect of 

 "tea and tennis" proceeding immediately beneath their 

 aerial nurseries. At home, a few years ago, we had a 

 " Kite Committee" charged to protect the half-dozen pairs 

 of kites which then survived on British soil, maintaining 

 watchers at each nest -by day and night. In Khartoum 

 some would rather subscribe to exterminate the kites ! 



That epochal autumn of 1918, when empires and 



u 



