34 UGANDA AND THE EGYPTIAN SOUDAN.

in my caravan, and in spite of all precautions, seven Wanyainwezi porters fell victims to it before it could be eradicated.

Three days' journey from Pongwe brought us to the valley of the "Wami. On the first day we stopped at a village called Funi, situated on the banks of a considerable stream of the same name which flowed to the Wami. Here we were delayed several days by sickness, and did not reach the latter river till August 21st. The Wami at this point certainly looked like a river which could be navigated by small steamers of light draught, though it had not proved so nearer its mouth. It was here some eighty yards wide, muddy, and with a strong current of about two miles an hour ; its depth I could not ascertain, but as it was not fordable, it must be at least five feet. The scenery here was quite different to any we had hitherto passed through. There was a broad grassy valley with a scanty growth of thorny acacias, while on the riverbank the constant supply of water produced a dense growth of tropical vegetation. Gigantic trees upwards of one hundred feet in height, festooned with huge rope-like creepers, overhung the stream and dipped their branches in its waters ; a species of white jasmine filled the air with its sweet scent ; large black kingfishers, looking as if carved out of ebony, sat motionless, watching for their prey ; here and there little islands covered with tall grass