OXEN. 241 Soon after leaving the- river the character of the vegetation completely changes ; nothing but scattered acacias, palms, and thorn bushes were to be seen. The acacias have a peculiar red look, and "wherever this is the case it is a sure sign that the ground is bad ; it generally indicates swamps. The present -march was no exception to this rule, and a most uneven surface of dried-up swamp was ridden over ; our poor donkeys, who were generally so sure-footed, had a hard time. Antelopes abounded ; we saw hundreds of them, but as they were very shy, it was difficult to get a shot at them. We met some of the oxen ; they were fine beasts ; each had a large pad on its back, on which the rider sits, armed with the long, heavy spear used for elephant-hunting. Its blade is eight inches wide and two feet long; two light spears are also carried. The driver sits between the loads, and guides the ox by a rope attached to the nose-ring. The oxen will carry five hundredweight ; their pace is two miles and a half an hour, and they are very useful in districts where there is swamp.

We camped at a small Arab village, lying a little to the west of the direct road. It was sixty feet below the level of the Bahr-el-Arab. The huts were wretched structures, being merely mats spread over a rude framework of wood, and surrounded by a thorn fence. After so long a time spent among VOL. n. E