LOFTY MOUNTAINS. 359 being an almost independent district, his promise was only to be taken as an empty compliment ; and although the big drums began at midnight to call the porters together, it was very late indeed before we were able to resume our march.

After passing between homesteads and extensive durrah-fields, which had just been sown with this year’s second crop, we soon reached the savannah, and marched on rapidly over a red clayey soil. Many elephants frequent this grassy region, and enjoy eating the Balanites and Zizyphus, which are now laden with fruit. A chain of mountains, called by the natives Rego, lay before us; in the centre there was a deep depression, to which we made our way, and which proved to be a defile thickly overgrown with bamboos; it led us to a narrow pass between the mountains of Lurja and Boron, which was rendered almost impassable by thickets of luxuriant vegetation. While we climbed with great difficulty through it, I buried the hope of ever using this road for camels. The aneroid read here 0.35 inch lower than it did in Mogedo, showing that the rise had been considerable, although it was not very noticeable during the march. ‘The district we had passed through must be completely without water in the winter, for even now, although the rainy season has not yet come to an end, we had difficulty in finding drinking-water. During the rains, however, a great quantity of water must flow from here to the river, for the ravines through which the watercourses wend their way, as well as the long, deep channels carved out by the erosive action of the water, are covered with white, coarse-grained sand and sharp quartz rubble.

Near to one of these, we entered the district of Fajelu proper, inhabited by various divisions of the Bari tribe. They are ruled over by independent chiefs, and only distinguished by a special dialect from the other Bari. On account of the very damp soil, a more vigorous growth of vegetation has sprung up here, and a small wood of Ceesalpinias and Kigelias, heavily laden with fruit, formed a pleasing, peaceful picture. Along the whole route we only saw two very small doléb palms. We camped for the night by the pools of Lodafe, where the porters were rewarded for their exertions by a cow. It was quickly killed and cut up, and, with plenty of meal,