WANDERING ELMOLO 



115 



seaweed and fringed with a narrow strip of light-green sharp- 

 pointed grass, whilst further inland we recognised the light 

 foliage of several kinds of acacias. The oround of the flat 

 landscape between the hills bounding the strand on the east 

 and the far-stretching Mount Longendoti was covered with a 

 thick layer of fine white sand, and greatly resembled a creek 

 running far up inland. The shallow water near the beach was 

 here again frequented by numerous birds, including, in addition 

 to those enumerated above, the first swallows we had seen for 

 a long time. 



Late in the afternoon a few dark forms loomed up on the 

 northern shore of the lake ; and soon afterwards we saw some 

 huge unwieldy-looking objects floating on the water. The forms 

 on land turned out to be wandering Elmolo, who were dragging 

 along seven rafts made of numbers of canoes fastened together, 

 these rafts being piled up with regular mountains of household 

 goods, on the top of which scpiatted a few women and children. 

 The men, up to their waists in water, dragged or pushed the 

 rafts along without a moment's rest ; whilst at least forty of 

 the little dogs referred to more than once in this narrative ran 

 beside them and barked in chorus when they passed our camp. 

 Lembasso and Sokoni jumped up at once to run and beg the 

 natives to halt near us ; but it was only labour lost. One woman 

 alone ventured to approach us. We learnt from her that the 

 people with her were Elmolo from Eeshiat, who had Ijeen 

 worsted in a struggle with some of their own tribesmen, and 

 were fugitives on their way to the southern Elmolo Island. She 

 herself was a Burkeneji, who had only lately joined the Elmolo. 

 Her kraal, she went on to say, had been attacked one night by 

 Turkana, who had carried off all the cattle and women, includ- 

 ing lierself, as booty. A few days later, however, she had 

 succeeded in hiding herself and getting away. On her way 

 home she had met another large party of Turkana ; but she 



