VALLEYS ON RUWENZORI. 97 



side. In the valleys it is much lower, descending 

 often to below 6,000 feet, while on the buttress- 

 ridges it is usually 7,000 feet (on the eastern side). 

 Moreover, towards the north end of the chain, it 

 sinks and at the same time becomes narrower. 



All these features can be readily perceived as 

 wind-effects. The mist clings to the steep moun- 

 tain sides and in the shelter of the valleys, and 

 would of course be blown over the projecting 

 ridges and the lower parts of the chain. 



As the explorer pursues his way upwards, he 

 suddenly finds the bamboos stop and a most 

 curious difference in everything. The ground is 

 a peat moss, covered with Sphagnums often to a 

 depth of 18 inches. In this grow bushes and 

 trees of heather, small trees of Hypericum and 

 curious gigantic Lobelias, more like Echiums than 

 anything else. Numerous forms belonging to such 

 genera as Senecio (groundsel) take on the cha- 

 racteristic primeval branching of the Dragon-tree 

 (Dracama Draco) of the Canaries. That is to say, 

 they branch six or seven times in their lives and 

 all together, and leaves grow in a cluster at the 

 ends of the branches. 



In its curious ingenuous simplicity this form of 

 vegetation irresistibly reminds one of Pterodactyls 

 and Plesiosauri. 



I was immediately struck with the extraordinary 

 resemblance of the Flora to that of the peak of 

 Teneriffe at a somewhat lower level. This resem- 



8 



