Deserts 123 



Yet there has not been a drop of rain, or even of 

 dew. The air no doubt is moister, for evaporation 

 from this wide expanse of water must go on at a 

 tremendous rate. But at present it is too hot and 

 dry to part with a single drop ; and it is from the soil 

 that the trees have received their fresh supplies, so 

 quickly does the water soak through the sand. But 

 this is not all that they will get. All nature seems to 

 expect a change, for the wind is blowing from the 

 south, and rain is surely coming ! 



The natives of South Africa say that the wind 

 * smells of green grass ' when the wind blows from a 

 quarter where rain has fallen, though this may be 

 hundreds of miles away ; and thousands of cattle will 

 start off sometimes and travel immense distances, in 

 the endeavour to reach the fresh pastures of which the 

 wind tells them. So keen is the scent of men and 

 animals in lands which suffer from long drought. 



