THE PASSAGE OF LAKE CHAD 



91 



spite of all I never suffered a day's fever on the Lake. There 

 is not a doubt that the Lake region is a white man's country. 

 The rains are never heavy and the desert character of the 



CUTTING THROUGH THE REEDS 



soil produces quick evaporation. During the dry season 

 from the middle of October to the end of April when the 

 harmattan prevails, there is a delightful freshness in the air 

 and the nights are beautifully cool, the thermometer register- 

 ing as low as 43° in the early hours of the morning. The 

 hottest month is May, but even then as the heat is dry I never 

 found it unbearable, although there were days when I regis- 

 tered 120° on the Lake itself. The only ill I suffered from 

 was insomnia, for I was seldom able to get to sleep before 

 the small hours. As my nights began at sundown owing 

 to the mosquitoes, the long hours of sleeplessness when there 



