To Lake Albert Edward 
191 
suddenly we observed that the flying flames were only a few 
hundred metres distant from the dwellings. We summoned the 
Askari and carriers in furious haste, and started out to meet the 
sea of flame. After two hours’ hard work we succeeded in beating 
out the heart of the conflagration. The two long tongues on 
either side, however, darted raging along to the right and left of 
the station. 
On the 24th of December all our members, excepting Kirsch- 
stein, whose work in the volcanic region had rendered an exten¬ 
sion of leave necessary, gathered together at Kasindi for a 
Christmas festivity. Christmas Eve passed very pleasantly. 
We Europeans met together at a common repast, and spent the 
remainder of the evening with a gramophone accompaniment 
beneath the lights of a Christmas tree fashioned by von Wiese 
out of the boughs of an acacia. A few glasses of grog assisted 
us to conjure up the festive spirit of Christmas, which it was 
difficult to realise amidst the green environment and the soft 
summer air. 
And so, after a few days of zealous industry, the New Year 
drew near. We were able to look back full of gratitude on the 
year that had passed, and to anticipate the. coming one full of 
hope. Each of my fellow-workers could gladly testify that, 
although labouring under many privations and the severest self- 
restraint, he had been successful in solving various new problems 
and in winning fresh fields of investigation for German science. 
On New Year’s Day Schubotz and I undertook an excursion, 
which was intended to extend over several days, to Njama 
Kasana for the purpose of fishing for plankton, dredging, and 
generally devoting our attention to the fauna of the lake. We 
only took a very small number of followers to erect the tents, 
one boy each and a cook, so that we were able to enjoy an undis¬ 
turbed time without being subjected to the worries which are 
inseparable from travelling with a caravan. 
From there we visited Katwe, a place of particular interest, 
which is situated on a salt inland lake, and is only divided from 
