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SKETCHES IN THE SOUDAN 31 



dinner, which always consisted of various arrangements of 

 guinea-fowl, florican, sand-grouse, antelope, or gazelle, a talk 

 about the morrow's programme, accompanied by a little tobacco, 

 wound up the day as usual. 



At the water-hole mentioned above, I afterwards lay out a 

 night in wait for lions, but, as usual on such occasions, saw 

 nothing larger than a hyena, so returned grumbling and stiff 

 in the morning. Two of our Arabs accompanied me, and before 

 sunset we arranged ourselves and our things as comfortably as 

 the stony, uneven ground would permit. The Arabs had brought 

 with them a small basket, neatly made of palm-leaves, filled with 

 dhurra, boiled in water for supper, which simple meal I had to 

 share with them ; then followed their evening devotions, and 

 hardly had they finished these, when, immediately before dusk, 

 " cheep," " cheep " was heard overhead, and the first sand- 

 grouse arrived, which, after wheeling once round in their rapid 

 flight, darted down to the sandy bed of the river to settle, from 

 which, on account of the resemblance in colour, it is very 

 difficult to distinguish them. " Cheep," " cheep " is now heard 

 everywhere, as covey after covey rapidly arrives. They come in 

 hundreds and thousands until, as in this case, the bed of the 

 river, from the water right across to the other bank, and I don't 

 know for how many yards on either side, was literally covered 

 with birds, so thickly crowded that a pebble could not have been 

 placed anywhere on the sand without touching some of them. 

 With incessant cries they gradually run towards the water, those 

 behind pushing those in front, until at last each individual bird 

 of that dense living mass is able to reach the edge of the pool 

 and quench its thirst. This accomplished, after a great deal of 

 struggling, the birds fly away as suddenly and rapidly as they 

 came, and before darkness all have disappeared and are on the 

 way to their homes on the stony, arid wastes, where they remain 

 during the day. It is an extraordinary sight, this sudden arrival, 

 general scramble, and sudden departure of these sand-grouse in 

 so very many thousands ; they always punctually arrive just 

 before dusk, and leave before darkness has set in, while in the 

 morning they drink at dawn. These beautifully plumaged birds, 

 though somewhat dry, are excellent eating ; their flesh is white 

 in, and brown outside. After their departure night rapidly set 

 in, and then we took it in turn to watch ; but though I sat out 



