XII 
LAKE RUDOLPH 
275 
flocks of white spoonbills for the first time. I also saw some 
of the birds which in South Africa go by the name of the small 
locust bird. 
Our progress was now smooth and pleasant in spite of the 
great heat, over great flats with a sandy soil, varied sometimes 
by low ridges of rotten ground with stones, where the pace was 
slower, the hills far away on our right and the lake more shoal 
than ever, with water-grass a mile or two out to sea. More 
fishing kraals on islands were passed, whose inhabitants were 
always ready to sell fish, both fresh and dried. I saw, too, a 
few duck at this part, and, all along, the various water-birds of 
the kinds already mentioned, with others not enumerated, were 
in astonishing numbers. Hippos are not common, and the few 
seen mostly far out from the shore, but land game plentiful, 
especially “ topi ” (which did not seem very wild), sometimes 
in large herds, as well as the usual kinds, including con¬ 
siderable numbers of the smaller zebra, Grevy’s being also 
present. 
Three or four Ndorobos from the large settlement we had 
passed several days before had been following us with the 
object of selling some ivory they knew of, which was concealed 
on the lake shore at this part. It proved to be two very large 
bull tusks, but they had evidently lain here for many years, and 
were nearly rotten. However, Mnyamiri was very pleased to 
acquire it, as he was able to buy it for a small quantity of 
goods. It seemed folly to me to carry such comparatively 
worthless stuff such an immense distance to the coast; but 
Swahili traders refuse nothing in the shape of ivory, however 
much damaged, and even buy rhinoceros horns, undeterred by 
long and difficult land carriage. 
I had hoped to begin to meet with elephants in this part, 
as Count Teleki and Captain Von Hohnel had told me that 
they had found numerous herds along this coast, all the way 
from Alia northward. But there can be no doubt that, at the 
period of their visit, a succession of seasons of exceptional 
