136 PERSONAL NARRATIVE. 



or of the North African (0. leucoryx). On the follow- 

 ing afternoon I had a great piece of good fortune. I 

 saw two of these fine antelopes, and made a successful 

 stalk, getting close to them, when they perceived me, 

 and ran out. I dropped one, and the other turning 

 round I shot it also, thus killing two right and left. On 

 the third day I killed a fourth. Jesse, who had worked 

 harder than I had, and had gone over more ground, 

 singularly enough did not see a single oryx. 



There were a few birds at Amba which I had not 

 previously met with, amongst others Sylma cinerea. To 

 my surprise I saw the Abyssinian roller also in this 

 hot region. 



A party of Egyptian ofiicers remained two days at 

 Amba whilst we were there. They were engaged in 

 laying out the line for an electric telegraph to unite 

 Massowa and Kussala. Two of them spoke French, and 

 one of them knew a little English. 



A few of the migratory bii-ds were beginning to return 

 from the north. I shot a grey harrier (Circus cineraceus) 

 on August 19th, and Lanius isabellinus on the 22d. 

 No SaxicolcB appeared, however, except Cercomela 

 melanura, which is a resident. 



We returned to Massowa on the 23d August. No 

 steamer had arrived from Aden, and on the 27th, 

 the Egyptian steamer coming in, Jesse left by her for 

 Suez and England. Mockler had not been able to 

 obtain a boat for Aden, nor could we secure one tUl 

 the 29 th, when we shipped ourselves and our men, and 

 started. 



