VARIETY OP^ GAME 169 



EL 'Aada if anything. The river was bordered by 

 dried-up swamp on both banks. Where we crossed it 

 we had to go through long grass for about 2^ miles — 

 the river flowing in the centre. The river was almost 

 dry, 30 yards across, with banks 15 feet high, and sandy 

 bed. From here to the Umbelacha, the main stream 

 of the Bahr el Arab, is, from January to May, a rather 

 waterless march. Going, there was just enough for 

 my small party, but coming back, twenty-four hours 

 later, the water-holes had practically dried up. 



We saw a lot of roan antelope, and, on my return 

 march, an elephant which I was unable to attack — 

 shortage of water and inability to carry back the 

 trophies being the reasons. 



To give an idea of the quantity of game about, I 

 might insert here a list of what I remember seeing on 

 one morning's march, and find recorded in a letter : 

 Buffalo, leopard, roan antelope, Vaughan's cob, dikdik, 

 hartebeest (Jackson's), waterbuck, bush-buck, besides 

 which I passed the fresh tracks of lion, elephant, 

 rhinoceros, and giraffe. 



From J. Siomo, called by Sparkes Pasha (the first 

 white man to visit the mines) J. Telata from the fact of 

 its consisting of three little peaks, I got a fine view. 

 Near it I put up a rhinoceros in a bamboo brake. 



When about ten miles from the mines I left my 

 party, and with three men went on to them. The 

 remainder were to collect water by squeezing it out of 

 the mud through a rag, as we had had to do already. 



When we reached the mines we were not much 

 impressed. There were a lot of shallow pits about 



