A WELL-CULTIVATED COUNTRY. 333 



oil which is obtained from it, for any other purpose than that 

 of anointing the body. The people believe, of course incor- 

 rectly, that the oil of the ground-nuts would be injurious to 

 eat, but that the sesame- oil is wholesome. All our porters 

 carried with them packets of ground-nuts neatly wrapped in 

 leaves. 



After marching an hour and a half from Ayak, we arrived 

 at the ford of the river, which flowed between steep sandy 

 banks about ten feet high ; it was sixty-five feet broad, and 

 from three to five feet deep. The river is bordered by very 

 uneven ground, with deep swampy places full of water and 

 mud. It took us half an hour to pass through this, after 

 which we came to a small patch of short grass, followed by 

 extensive fields of durrah and dokhn, alternating with grass 

 steppe. The district on the other side of the river is called, 

 like the principal village, Ferial, but a river Ferial or Welle 

 does not exist here. If one may judge from the extensive 

 cultivation, the number of people we met on the well-trodden 

 paths, and the numerous zeribas, this country is very thickly 

 populated, and is exceedingly productive in corn, sesame, and 

 tobacco. The masliirr of Ayak (Nicotiana ncstica), as well 

 as very large gourds which are used for jars, are much sought 

 after and prized throughout the whole district of the Bahr-el- 

 Jebel. In the corn-fields surrounding the village of Malek, 

 which we left to our right, were a number of quails with their 

 young, probably the Cotumix Delegorguei, for the G. communis, 

 which is very rare here, would certainly have no young at 

 this time. Just behind the village lay the swamp of Warrafan, 

 which is never dry. 



After a four hours' march, we rested under a group of butter- 

 trees, which provided us with shade from the burning sun, 

 and where we received presents of water from the Agar chiefs 

 living in the neighbourhood. From this place a long march 

 through corn-fields, villages, and patches of ground scorched by 

 the sun, led to the wells of Mienval, which were in the middle 

 of the road ; they were about ten feet deep, in thick, light grey 

 loam, and contained very dirty water of a milky colour. With 

 a little trouble, however, it would be possible, by deepening 

 the wells, to get better water, and that this is not done shows 



