204 .TOURNEY TO CENTRAL AFRICA seen, stretched the long mountain of Berber, which we first discerned the day previous, when crossing the rise of the Wady el-homar. The opposite bank was a sea of vivid green, as far as the eye could reach. Near the water the bean and lupin flourished in thick clusters ; behind them extended fields of cotton, of a rich, dark foliage ; and still beyond, tall ranks of dourra, heavy with ripening heads. Island-like groups of date-trees and doum-palms studded this rich bed of vegetation, and the long, blue slope of the mountain gave a crowning charm to the landscape. As we approached the capital of Berber, the villages on our right became more frequent, but our path still lay over the dry plain, shimmering with the lakes of the mirage. TVe passed a score of huge vultures, which had so gorged themselves with the carcase of a camel, that they could scarcely move out of our way. Among then) were several white hawks, a company of crows, and one tall black stork, nearly five feet in height, which walked about with the deliberate pace of a staid clergyman. Flocks of quail rose before our very feet, and a large gray dove, with a peculiar cooing note, was very abundant on the trees.

My shaytan of a guide, Eyoub, wanted to stop at a village called El Khassa, which we reached at two o'clock. El Mekheyref, he said, was far ahead, and we could not get there ; he would give us a sheep for our dinner ; the Effendi must prove his hospitality (but all at the Effendi's expense), and many other weighty reasons — but it would not do. I ■ pushed on ahead, made inquiries of the natives, and in two hours saw before me the mud fortress of El Mekheyref. The camel-men, who were very tired, from the long walk from Korosko, would willingly have stopped at El Khassa, but when I pointed out