226 VALLEY OF THE QUANGO. 



Canango They kindly presented my men with somo 

 tobacco, and marvelled greatly when they found that I 

 had never been able to teach myself to smoke. 



As we were now alone, and sure of being on the way to 

 the abodes of civilization, we went on briskly. 



On the 30th we came to a sudden descent from the high 

 land, indented by deep, narrow valleys, over which we had 

 lately been travelling. It is generally so steep that it can 

 only be descended at particular points, and even there I 

 was obliged to dismount, though so weak that I had to be 

 led by my companions to prevent my toppling over in 

 walking down. It was annoying to feel myself so helpless, 

 for I never liked to see a man, either sick or well, give in 

 effeminately. Below us lay the valley of the Quango. If 

 you sit on the spot where Mary Queen of Scots viewed the 

 battle of Langside, and look down on the vale of Clyde, 

 you may see in miniature the glorious sight which a much, 

 greater and richer valley presented to our view. It ia 

 about a hundred miles broad, clothed with dark forest, 

 except where the light-green grass covers meadow-lands on 

 the Quango, which here and there glances out in the sun 

 as it wends its way to the north. The opposite side of this 

 great valley appears like a range of lofty mountains, and 

 the descent into it about a mile, which, measured perpen- 

 dicularly, may be from a thousand to twelve hundred feet. 

 Emerging from the gloomy forests of Londa, this magnifi- 

 cent prospect made us all feel as if a weight had been lifted 

 off our eyelids. A cloud was passing across the middle of 

 the valley, from which rolling thunder pealed, while above 

 all was glorious sunlight ; and when we went down to the 

 part where we saw it passing we found that a very heavy 

 thunder-shower had fallen under the path of the cloud, 

 and the bottom of the valley, which from above seemed 

 quite smooth, we discovered to be intersected by great 

 numbers of deep-cut etreams. Looking back from below, 

 the descent appears as the edge of a table-land, with 

 numerous indented dells and spurs jutting out all along, 



