THE DESERTS 
31 
back-bent horns easily exceed 40 inches in length ; and, 
in the Deserts of Dongola onjyf the Addax. 1 So reclusive ^ /r tfRcS L 
is addax that he places a waterless zone of some 200 Jh^UCtCCMC 
miles beyond the outmost wells and his Saharan retreat — ^ 
in other words, not his keenest admirer can hope for an 
interview within less than ten to twelve days’ camelry ; or 
say, a fortnight’s journey west of Dongola. There, in 
sterile desert where rainfall is unknown and where the 
atmosphere scorches like the breath of a furnace, this coy 
creature abides stationary—that is, he is guilty of no con¬ 
siderable seasonal migration. The addax carries a fine 
trophy, his koodoo-like horns exceeding a yard in length ; 
but, though desert - hued, is not otherwise markedly 
specialised for so inhospitable an environment, save for his 
immensely broadened hoofs, adapted for traversing soft 
sands. Somewhat mild and demure of aspect—rather 
recalling the reindeer in slouching gait and low-held head 
—the addax hardly betrays the milder traits which his 
personal appearances suggest. Once his remote retreat 
is reached, his capture presents a less formidable problem 
than does that of leucoryx farther south. It is not to 
be inferred that addax surrenders at discretion—far from 
that; yet it may be presumed that the man who has 
set at naught the antecedent trials will hardly fail in the 
final. 
To physical and geographical obstacles a charming 
element of uncertainty is added by the liability of this No- 
Man’s-Land to raids by nomads from the borders of 
Cyrenaiaca and Tripoli, as well as by the local Bedaiats, 
whose ideals of universal brotherhood manifest themselves 
in fly-away massacres of military outposts or unguarded 
camps. The industry of these philanthropists periodically 
1 An apology is due for inserting even brief and condensed notes upon 
two animals which I have not seen in their haunts. My sole excuse is that 
both are very little known—entire strangers, it is probable, to the bulk of my 
readers ; while the notes themselves are based on most careful inquiry 
made in anticipation of completing that personal acquaintance which 
circumstances beyond my control have since frustrated. 
