296 SERVICE AND SPORT IN THE SUDAN 



Bedouin owner in the northerly oasis, while their 

 relations petition the Government for blood-money. 

 At Sheb I rearranged my party. With two police as 

 guides, my servant, and food and rations for four days, 

 I started for Terfaui. Prior to my visit this oasis was 

 supposed to be identical with Safsaf, fifty miles north- 

 west of Sheb, whereas it is thirty more in the same 

 direction. 



Crossing a col of one of the hills that lie round 

 the well we found ourselves in a plain, five miles in 

 diameter, surrounded by hills. One road lay towards 

 five black hills that were very conspicuous. The 

 camels, trotting over this plain, turned up a bright red 

 sand. I got some. It had some grains of chrome 

 colour in it, and was damp. Near the hills I saw pieces 

 of sandstone covered with small stalactites of the same 

 stone, painted in hues of brilliant colours. 



After leaving the plain the going for about seven 

 miles was over rocky ground, but soon it changed 

 to a dull brown smoothness, which resembled nothing 

 so much as a surly sea — the long undulations, the 

 swell, and the heaps of pebbles, the summits of the 

 waves. Twenty-five miles from Sheb we crested a 

 rise, and before us saw spread a panorama of level 

 yellow sand — no rolling ground, no stones. Only, 

 in the far distance, floating in mirage, three widely- 

 separated terabil. We made for the centre one. In 

 the cup, formed by three hummocks, we found a 

 well dug to the depth of 18 inches by the forefeet 

 of the gazelle, whose tracks were numerous. The 

 water was very brackish. The sun was well up when 



