THE SULTAN'S STUD. 
13 
to any gentleman who might request them from his 
stud of Arab descent. Colonel Bigby's horse-attend- 
ant took me to the spot. The menage consisted of 
some forty horses and mares of Arab blood — twenty 
of them packed so close in line under a long shed that 
it would have defied any one of them to lie down. 
They stood upon an incline of wood six inches higher 
in front than behind, with heel-ropes so tight that the 
poor animals could hardly raise their feet ; many of 
their tails shaved to the bone, others snipped round 
with scissors ; not a sound one amongst them — broken 
knees, greasy and gummy legs, mangy skins, bags of 
bone ; and the outer one of all such a skeleton that I 
listened to ascertain whether he breathed. Certainly 
the mares looked more comfortable when picketed in 
the morning in the open yard upon sand, and tied 
loosely by the head, with nose-bags full of grain; 
and the picture around them of domestic animals 
had much the appearance of a home farmyard. 
The climate of Zanzibar is very relaxing, owing to 
the humidity of the air, a great amount of rain falling 
during the year. The rain comes down in plunges, 
pelting showers, or like squalls at sea, and in the in- 
tervals any bodily exertion is attended with profuse 
perspiration and lassitude. I may mention that we 
pitched camp on the 13th September, for our Cape 
Mounted Eifl.es, on a rising ground near a pond behind 
the town, where they remained upwards of ten days. 
On the 28th, when on the main coast of Africa, three 
of these Tots were struck down with fever, a fourth 
was seized soon after, and then a fifth — all on the 
same day. Speke and I did not sleep in that camp, 
and our health was not affected. Colonel Rigby men- 
