MOMBASA 



II 



scuttle away sideways and with astonishing (juickness 

 it requires some alertness on the part of the collector to 

 catch them. 



The parts of the islands immediately bordering the 

 sea are thick with vegetation, and the castor-oil plant 

 (Riciim.s communis) is sure to attract attention. Another 

 common plant is the Cape gooselierry. The wealth and 

 beauty of the butterflies flitting among the plants soon 

 impress the visitor with the fact that he is in a tropical 

 region. The birds, too, are interesting, especially the 

 weaver finches, some of which build their nests in the 

 branches of the bougainvilleas that grow in the gardens 

 bordering the roadway ; even in those which overhang- 

 it. The comparative security of birds is shown by the 

 freedom in which they build in the haunts of men. 

 The verandah of the Court of Justice is adorned by the 

 nests of swallows. 



Every part of this fertile island teems with life, 

 animal and vegetable. My A'isits to the club used 

 to interest me, for pretty weaver fijiches flit through 

 the branches of the trees in the club gardens, lizards ran 

 along the railings, and in the silence of the library it was 

 amusing to watch geckoes dart across the ceiling catch- 

 ing flies. 



In the short evening hour the European population 

 takes the air. The chief mode of locomotion is the 

 jinricksha, but there is a narrow trolley-way running 

 across the island to Kilindini with lateral branches to 

 official residences. The small cars which run on these 

 lines are pushed by native boys. These cars and 

 jinrickshas are very useful, especially as there are 

 no horses. 



There is a cosmic phenomenon of some interest which 

 can be seen and studied in the Indian Ocean and 

 throughout the East far better than in England, 

 namely the zodiacal light. Shortly before the dawn, 

 a lenticular patch of soft white light, with its base on 

 the eastern horiz(ni and its apex pointing t(j the zenith. 



