70 MRULI TO THE CAPITAL OF UNYORO.

the same time the water was often knee-deep in the holes and puddles. After we had passed Khor Kabrogéta, the water of which is so strongly impregnated with iron that it is said to distend the intestines, we marched a little farther, and then suddenly turned to the right into a much-neglected banana grove, where it was suggested that we should pass the night. The people scattered immediately ; but when I looked round for shelter I only found one broken-down, abominably filthy hut ; so I insisted on a further march, and although an hour passed before I got the people together, we left this inhospitable Kikinda, continued our difficult march through water and bush for more than an hour and a half, and finally occupied at sunset some huts in the village of Blindi. In one of the huts here a wooden triangle was hanging, to which were suspended a large number of small gourds filled with pebbles ; this was a rattle to accompany the dance.

No rain fell during the night, but in the early morning all the sky was grizzly grey, in spite of which we set out, keeping, with few deviations, to the road along which we marched on our journey to Kabréga’s. The winding Khor Kyai, although now roaring and full of water, was twice forded without difficulty ; but the great papyrus swamp which followed gave us a good deal of trouble on account of its entangled roots. I secured a fine specimen of Scopus wmbretta. We had hardly crossed the swamp, when the rain, till now bearable, beat down with such violence that we rushed forward at great speed for about half an hour, when we reached Kitdéngali, somewhat below the place where we had previously passed the night.

We sheltered in some huts, dried ourselves by a blazing fire, and could not think of continuing our journey until midday. An unpleasant incident happened to me here, for I discovered that, unluckily, I had lost my note-book during the rain, and in spite of an energetic search I was not able to find it; but after the rain was over, a woman returned it tome uninjured. Another occurrence took place shortly before starting. Msige wanted to take a jar full of lubias from a woman, but she, taking the joke ill, struck him over the head with the jar, and wounded him badly. A fearful disturbance arose, and at first they wanted to kill the woman; but finally,