136 WET DAY IN ADAL. 



of salt that had been unfairly added to the burdens 

 of our camels at the salt lake. 



In this miserable manner I spent nearly the 

 whole day, crouching on my heels beneath the tree, 

 and anxiously endeavouring to prevent my fire^ 

 arms being rendered useless by the wet; and 

 it was with no small degree of pleasure that a little 

 before three o'clock, I saw the rain ceasing as 

 suddenly as it commenced, the sun come out, and 

 the volume and force of the river rapidly 

 diminish. The wet clothes were now stretched 

 upon the ground, or on the tops of the dwarf 

 shrubs, of which, in this favoured spot, great 

 numbers were growing. My bed of mats, my 

 cloak, plaid, and carpet, in a very short time were 

 perfectly dry, and I was once more made com- 

 fortable in my retreat, but with the most dismal 

 forebodings of fever, and all the other evils which 

 exposure to damp and moisture in hot countries are 

 apt to engender, and from the bad effects of which 

 I had only so recently recovered. After the very 

 evident depression occasioned amongst the Ka- 

 fllah men by the rain during the day, the warm 

 and welcome sunshine of the few hours before 

 sunset, brought about a re-action amongst them, 

 and when they had retired to their mats for the 

 night, another of their farcical conversations was 

 carried on by several distant individuals of the 

 camp, who shouted aloud their observations, whilst 



