THE YALO RIVER. 325 played an intolerable preference for the corners of the eyes and the nose. If it is crushed between the fingers, a strong smell of honey remains. ‘There are also two other species of flies which are very common. One is like the common European blue-bottle, the other is a large ash-grey species. Butterflies are also seen in great quantities, from the large Eques species down to the almost invisible moths. The most beautifully coloured species I have yet seen is undoubtedly a small green Zygeena, which, being coloured purple silver and steel green, shines like a spark of fire. Unfortunately, I had no insect pins in my possession.

At midday we arrived at a point where the ridge of hills running along the river is touched by the road, and a few’ minutes later we came upon the river itself, which has exceedingly high banks, but we left it almost immediately. The path branched away between the hills, and was rendered difficult by the presence of crevices and very deep rain-gutters, as well as thorns, especially those of the Randia, which were more numerous here than elsewhere. After about an hour’s exceedinely difficult march, we again reached the river-bank, which was about twelve feet above the water, and descending which we arrived at the ford. The current presses upon the steep eastern bank. The river is exactly one hundred and eighty-seven feet broad ; in the middle large blocks of stone were lying, and the water reached up to our waists. The river is called the Yalo, both by the Bufi and the Lési, but farther to the north the Dinka call it Gel. The west bank, which has only a gentle fall, is often flooded, and here, close by the river, is a high tree, a Diospyros, on account of which the ford is called Patokome (Meshrat-el-Jogan). Jogain is the Arabic name for the Diospyros, the sweet fruits of which are freely eaten everywhere. Mohammed Mismar’s small zeriba lies about ten minutes upstream; he lives there alone. Five minutes to the west is the place where Poncet’s zertba, Mvolo, once stood, and this name is retained to the present day. The name Moffa, which has béen given by Junker to the place, is the name of the chief of a village near to it, and the word Lési, which is commonly applied to the small zertba here, is really the name for the district, and for the small tribe which inhabits it.