372 
UGANDA 
[CH. XIII 
went on without a break hour after hour. The natives 
looked well and were dressed well ; the men in long 
flowing garments of white, the women usually in brown 
cloth made in the old native style out of the bark of the 
bark cloth tree. The clothes of the chiefs were taste¬ 
fully ornamented. All the people, gentle and simple, 
were very polite and ceremonious both to one another 
and to strangers. Now and then we met parties of 
Sikh soldiers, tall, bearded, fine-looking men with 
turbans ; and there were Indian and Swahili, and even 
Arab and Persian, traders. 
The houses had mud walls and thatched roofs. The 
gardens were surrounded by braided cane fences. In 
the gardens and along the streets were many trees ; 
among them bark cloth trees, from which the bark is 
stripped every year for cloth ; great incense trees, the 
sweet-scented gum oozing through wounds in the bark; 
the date palms, in the fronds of which hung the nests of 
the golden weaver-birds, now breeding. White cow 
herons, tamer than barnyard fowls, accompanied the 
cattle, perching on their backs, or walking beside them. 
Beautiful Kavirondo cranes came familiarly round the 
houses. It was all strange and attractive. Birds sang 
everywhere. The air was heavy with the fragrance of 
flowers of many colours; the whole place was a riot of 
lush growing plants. Every day there were terrific 
thunderstorms. At Kampalla three men had been 
killed by lightning within six weeks ; a year or two 
before our host, Knowles, had been struck by lightning 
and knocked senseless, a hugh zigzag mark being left 
across his body, and the links of his gold watchchain 
being fused ; it was many months before he completely 
recovered. 
Knowles arranged a situtunga hunt for us. The 
