242 SERVICE AND SPORT IN THE SUDAN 



beat me — was i6 yards across, with 14-feet high 

 banks, and water so deep that my donkey had to 

 swim. We jumped from one big boulder to another. 

 Just as night fell it began to rain. The steep, tree- 

 clad hills were on either side, and along them or 

 at their foot the path ran. The intense darkness 

 was presently dispelled by a terrific thunderstorm. 

 Till one has heard tropical thunder, on a dark night, 

 in narrow valleys, one scarcely sees the realism of 

 Kipling's fine lines : — 



" Taman is two in one and rides the sky, 

 Curved like a stallion's croup from dusk to dawn, 

 And drums upon it with his heels, whereby 

 Is bred the neighing thunder of the hills." 



Our guide actually felt the way with his bare feet, 

 and my orderly took off his boots to help him. At 

 9.30 P.M. we reached our objective, Sheikh Gessingeira's 

 village. I should love to do that march in daylight 

 to see if it was as hilly as I thought, for after leaving 

 Migi, riding became impossible. 



It had cleared up a bit when we halted. I lay 

 down on my furwa and slept till about midnight. It 

 then started to rain heavily. In the meantime some 

 of my party had arrived, but the remainder, with 

 the baggage, had gone astray and rejoined us next 

 morning. Sheikh Gessingeira had turned out of two 

 of his huts, so I made for one and found half-a-dozen 

 of my men in it. They wished to turn out into 

 the rain, but, of course, I would not hear of that. 

 At 4 A.M. I awoke. One man's legs were across mine, 

 another had his feet in the small of my back, and 



