Transport. 41 Some weeks after the termination of the rains the black soil cracks in wide and deep fissures.

South of parallel of 12° 30' and west of longitude 32°, is the richest soil of Kordofan, composed of clay loam, with a certain admixture of felspar, which, if it could be watered, would produce magnificent crops of sugar-cane, corn, tobacco, and cotton.

The rest of the district is, though inferior to the above, a strong soil, and capable of being made productive ; it is largely felspathic, with more or less iron, and considerable mica. It only wants water to make it fertile. The land is in many places impoverished by the recurrence of the same crop for centuries ; this is most common about Bara and Taiara.

Means of Transport.

Kordofan being a country of plains, carriageable roads might be made there with very little labour. Colonel Colston stated iu 1875 that " a good teamster could with- Wagons, out any difficulty drive a loaded six-mule wagon from Debbeh to El Obeid. The route to Khartum is still more practicable. There is no doubt that a Dutch Boer from the Cape or Port Natal colonies, if living in this country, would promptly supply himself with splendid ox-teams. It seems strange that the natives have never tried to make use of wheeled vehicles, nor even to use their fine oxen for ploughing. The wood found in the country would make tolerably good wheels, for sakiehs are made of it. The deep and shifting sand which prevents the use of vehicles in Lybia and other deserts is not found here. The chief difficulty would be to make wheels able to hold together in spite of the great heat and extreme dryness. I feel sure that wagon trains might be organised for the service of the troops stationed in Kordofan and Darfur, and that they would save expense to the Government. It would be necessary to use camels as draught animals, for which purpose they are well fitted. The trial I made of them in hauling the artillery, with simple ropes, proves that their enormous strength can be utilised with even more advantage for draught than for burden. A wagon, with four camels supplied with suitable harness, would easily transport the loads of 12 to 15 camels—40 to 60 cantars. The wheel tyres should be 10 to 12 inches wide,