EL AYN. 257 The district known as El Ayn, which means **the spring," is a very curious one. The Arabs give that name both to the country and the stream, which, rising to the surface in the bed of a khor flows for three or four miles, and then loses itself in the sand. The water is very clear, though slightly brackish.

The country about, though picturesque, is unfortunately very feverish, and possesses a rainy season during what is the driest season in the adjacent country.

After passing through a very arid tract, it is curious to come suddenly on the verdancy of spring. Here we found the hillsides clothed in green, and every thing looking fresh and flourishing. Birds were building their nests ; and the great numbers of weaver-birds, whose pendent structures hung from the boughs, particularly interested us. The air was filled with the buzz of insects ; among them, unhappily, mosquitoes. We found also several chameleons.

Wart-hogs {pJiacocJicerits celiani) are not uncommon in this valley, my brother being lucky enough to obtain a right and left ; one of those he shot had fine tusks.

After a night at El Ayn we resumed our journey, fortunately escaping the rain which fell almost every day ; on two former journeys we had not fared so well, getting a good wetting each time, on one occasion having three days of it. It seldom continued all day however, usually commencing at three or four o'clock in the afternoon, when it would come down in torrents, and perhaps continue for half the night.

Soon after starting, we killed a small snake, which the Arabs declared to be very venomous : we had met with very few of any kind, throughout our travels.

We overtook a detachment of Bashi-Bazouks in charge of a number of wretched-looking prisoners, — Arabs who had been caught paying tribute to the Abyssinians. They marched in