56 Kordofan.

Towns and Localities.

EiObeid. ~E\ Obeid, the capital of Kordofan, is situated in lat.

13° 10' N. and long. 30° 7' E. The height above the sea level is given by different authorities as 1,402, 1,570, 1,899, or 1,919 feet. It is a straggling collection of mud huts, comprising six different villages, each forming a separate quarter, inhabited by a distinct class, and stands in a vast plain. The dwellings are mere huts of straw and mud, with the exception of a few built of clay, and the late Government House, one of the mosques, three barracks, and a hospital built of sun-dried bricks. Like at Berber, there are many pits in the streets from which building mud has been dug. These are used as refuse pits in • the dry season, but in the rainy season are full of stagnant wai er and beed much fever.

The market place presents a scsne of much animation during the day ; it used to be a great trading centre for gum, ostrich feathers, &c.

Before the Mahdist rising there was a Roman Catholic mission established here, a branch of that at Khartum. The priests stated that they did not find the climate very trying.

The wells are very deep, some as much as 100 feet, and at times the water is very scarce (v. p. 48). The annual export of El Obeid used to be reckoned at 100,000 cwt. The town, under Muhamed Pasha Said, made a gallant defence against the Mahdi from 3.9.82 to 17.1.83, when it fell owing to starvation, other towns. Bara is a pretty town; the wells are 20 feet deep or less, and there used to be splendid gardens. All kinds of fruit and vegetables could be bought. It was at one time intended to remove the seat of government from El Obeid to Bara on account of the superior water supply of the latter ; the rebellion prevented the accomplishment of this purpose.

The following notes as to places of some interest may be of use.

Melbeis (or Mulbes), 12 miles south of El Obeid. A tukl village at the foot of a hill of the same name. Northeast of it the plain is thickly covered with bush and intersected by small khors. Khor Mulbes has in places