646 Mr. J. I. S. Whitaker on 
and should never have been sent by the authorities on a 
journey of this sort. 
On the 26th of Aprils after four days of hard and incessant 
marching through waterless desert, the caravan arrived at 
Sokna^ an oasis and town situated about 350 miles south of 
Tripoli, with a population of 2000 natives and a Turkish 
garrison of 200 men. Here a week^s halt was made to 
recruit the exhausted forces of both man and beast after 
their forced march across the desert. During the stay at 
Sokna some collecting was done^ both of birds and small 
mammals ; but of the former there were but few species, the 
Desert Sparrow {Fassey^ simplex) and the Coronetted Sand- 
Grouse {^Fterocles coronatus) being among the most note- 
worthy. 
More dust-storms were experienced about this time, and 
one night some torrential rains also fell. On the 4th of May, 
Mursuk having been fixed on as the furthest southern limit 
of the expedition, the journey was resumed in that direction, 
and the following day the caravan entered the range of the 
Djebel Soda, or Black Mountains, as they have appropriately 
been called, from the colour of the stone of which they are 
formed. Two days after crossing this range Avater was met 
with, and all the water-skins were then filled, and prepara- 
tions made for another long waterless desert march. 
A caravan from the coast was here encountered, which had 
suffered greatly from the "• gebleh '^ winds and lost one-half 
of the flocks with which it had started. Gazelles [Gazella 
dorcas) were numerous here, and a nice specimen was added 
to the collection, as was also a hysena {Hyana striata). 
On the 11th of May a little pasturage was reached, and the 
camp was pitched for a well-earned rest after the forced 
march of 15 and 18 hours at a stretch just accomplished ; but 
another terrific storm brought the tents to the ground, and 
rendered the night miserable. The horses of the caravan 
too, maddened by hunger and thirst, stampeded during the 
night, and were never afterwards recovered, although two 
days were spent in diligently searching for them. 
On the 14th of May the small oasis (and village) of Zigheu 
