19S TRAVELS IN 
friend. I refpeded the rights of hofpitality, 
which I had enjoyed, it is true, on my own au- 
thority ; like a generous conqueror, I not only 
forbade their little ftore of provifion to be 
touched, but I left in the moil confiderable of 
the huts, fome tobacco, feveral articles of hard- 
ware, and a few joints of the ox which had 
been killed in the mountains. 
About ten in the morning we halted at the 
foot of a duller of granite rocks, covered with 
kooker-booms. The place being deftitute of 
water, I expefted nothing but to Indulge in 
gloomy refledions, little hoping to find a phe- 
nomenon, which J being new to me, afforded me 
great delight. This was a monftrous neft, oc- 
cupying great part of a large and ftrong aloe. 
It was compofed of a multitude of cells, and 
ferved as a retreat to an immenfe number of 
birds of the fame fpecies. Klaas Bafter and 
Schoenmaker had already fpoken to me feveral 
times of thefe fmgular edifices^ but hitherto 
fortune had never thrown one in my way, I 
remained a long while contemplating it. Every 
moment flights of birds iffoed from it, and dif- 
perfed themfelves over the plain ; while others 
returned to it, bringing in their bills the ne- 
ce/Tary 
