q THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 
imagine has the figure of a lion. We now aiizhte: 
half a. mile from the river, ina {mall plain, where was on. , 
one fhepherd with his cot and flock. At fome diftance, near 
the river, there was a houfe or two with fakies. Sepiember 
is the feed-time in this country. When the Nile is at its 
height, the flat ground along the fide of the water, which 
is about a quarter of a mile broad, is fown with dora, as 
far as water can be conducted in rills to it, but after this 
fhort fpace, the ground rifes immediately; there the har- 
veft-time is in November ;-and the feed-time at Sennaar is. 
in July, and their harveft.in September ; both regulated by 
the height of the Nile at the refpective places.. 
-. On the 2d of October, at half paft five in the morning we" 
left Hajar el Affad ; for the two laft days paft our journey lay~ 
through woods.and defert, without water or villages; we 
refted upon the Nile, which foon receded from us. After 
having gone about two miles we faw fome fmall houfes 
and fakies,'with narrow ftripes of corn on both fides of the 
river. About a mile further, we began, inftead of the fandy 
defert, to fee large ftratums of purple, red and white mar- 
ble, and alfo alabafter: It feems as if thofe immenfe quar- 
ries, which run into Upper Egypt 10°N. from this, firft take 
their rife here.. This day we journied through woods of 
acacia.and jujebs. At twenty minutes paft eight we alight- 
ed in a-wood:to feed our camels... The fun was fo immo- 
derately het that we could not travel. The Nile from Ger- 
ri declines almoft infenfibly from the E. of N. The whole 
country is defert and without inhabitants, faving the banks 
of the river; for-there are here no regular rains that can- 
be depended upon at any certain time for the purpofe of 
agriculture ; only there fall violent fhowers at the time’ 
the. 
