VII 
JOURNEY TO WEB BE SHABELEH RIVER 
193 
owing to the rain I had to abandon the idea ; and when we 
went to the camel at midnight, we found it had been killed by 
hyaenas, an enormous number of which haunted the outskirts 
of the karias. 
While I was encamped at Durhi the Malingur told me that 
their chief, Umr Ugaz, had gone to Harar to make a compact 
with K&s Makunan, agreeing to pay regular tribute and 
acknowledge his sovereignty. The Malingur, although demon- 
strative in their first welcome to me, afterwards became reserved, 
because they feared that civility to Europeans might get them 
into trouble with the Abyssinians. They are in the line of 
Abyssinian invasion eastward along the FMan Valley, and have 
been utterly cowed. 
On the 20th we travelled two marches to Las Darnel, and 
thence to Garabad. On reaching this place at noon, I found a 
large herd of beisa oryx feeding on either side of the caravan 
route, and shot three. On the first shot the herd, instead of 
running away, charged round the wounded one as they do when 
hunted with dogs ; and reloading, by a quick right and left, I 
was able to bag a second and third. 
The valley of Daghatto, on the Galla border, said to be 
swarming with elephants, was now only ten miles on the west 
of us. So halting at Garabad, I sent Geli and two Malingur 
guides, who had joined us, into the Daghatto Valley to see 
what they could find ; they returned at night showing pieces 
of freshly-chewed aloe, and reporting that they had seen an 
elephant. We marched into the Daghatto Valley next morning, 
passing between low, flat-topped hills, and camped in thick 
umbrella mimosas, forming a strong zerfba with felled trees, 
as our guides reported the country dangerous. The jungle 
descended gradually to the Daghatto stream, which was a mile 
to the west of us, its course being north and south. It has 
its source in the Harar highlands, and flows towards the 
Webbe. 
Directly the camp had been pitched I organised a small 
hunting caravan, consisting of the three fast camels, the mule, 
and six men, with food for two days. We set off at once, and 
soon reached the Daghatto stream. We found it a beautiful little 
river, overshadowed by large and wild forest, with hanging 
masses of creeper, there being a carpet of rich grass. Footprints 
of elephants of different dates were everywhere visible in the 
earth, and stems of trees were broken, or the trees uprooted and 
o 
