326 A SPORTING TRIP THROUGH ABYSSINIA chap. 



grand view of a maze of broken cliffs and hills lying on 

 either side, the finest bluffs being to the north. The 

 country, as one looked away out to the Soudan, was 

 much more hilly and forest -clad than it had been 

 further south, where we had first descended to it, while 



in the far distance, although we could see stretches of 

 more level ground, none of the vivid green of the bamboo 

 caught the eye. The track led to the edge of the cliff 

 and descended by a rift in its side, more like the bed of 

 a torrent than a path ; this it took the mules half an hour 

 to scramble down, doing indeed no injury to the baggage, 

 but a great deal to their backs, as I afterwards discovered 

 to my annoyance. Next, a long easy slope took us past 

 two curious domes of rock, and afterwards by a larger 

 mass called Aurer Masarres, which forms a landmark 

 for many miles round. On the way I heard a rustle in 

 the grass and fired at the indistinct form of an animal, 

 which fell, and proved to be a duiker ; as I had no meat 



