PLAINS covered with water. 
183 
found : it remained at this village more thai a year, and, 
when we returned, a mouse had eaten a hole in it. 
We entered on an extensive plain beyond the Leoba, at 
least twenty miles broad, and covered with water ankle 
deep in the shallowest parts. We deviated somewhat from 
oar N. W course, by the direction of Intemese, ar.d kept 
the hills Pm nearly on our right during a great part of 
the first day, in order to avoid the still more deeply-flooded 
plains of Lobale (Luval?) on the west. These, according 
to Intemese, are at present impassable on account of being 
thigh deep. The plains are so perfectly level that rain- 
water, which this was, stands upon them for months together 
They were not flooded by the Leeba, for that was still far 
within its banks. Here and there, dotted over the surface, 
are little islands, on which grow stunted date-bushes and 
scraggy trees. 
We made our beds on one of the islands, and were 
wretchedly supplied with firewood. The booths constructed 
by the men were but sorry shelter, for the rain poured 
down without intermission till mid-day. There is no drain- 
age for the prodigious masses of water on these plains, ex- 
cept slow percolation into the different feeders of the Leeba 
and into that river itself. The quantity of vegetation has 
prevented the country from becoming furrowed by many 
rivulets or “nullahs.” Were it not so remarkably flat, the 
drainage must have been effected by torrents, even in spite 
af the matted vegetation. 
When released from our island by the rain ceasing, we 
marched on till we came to a ridge of dry inhabited land 
in the N.W. The inhabitants, according to custom, lent 
us the roofs of some huts to save the men the trouble of 
booth-making. I suspect that the story in Park’s “ Travels,” 
of the men lifting up the hut to place it on the lion, referred 
to the roof only. We leave them for the villagers to replace 
at their leisure. No payment is expected for the use of 
them. By night it rained so copiously that all our beds 
wore flooded from below ; and from this time forth we 
