TURKISH     EMPIRE-EGYPTE                      
  1211

great and small-pelicans, geese, ducks. Passed a village of houses made of
sticks
stuck in the ground, surrounded am-dcovered with matting called mazaini,
and saw
immense herds of cattle, the natives, guarding them, armed with long, broadheaded
lances. The delays in cutting woodifor our boilers are most frequent and
tedious, and
I think we must have regular wood-stations established along the river, with
lighters
to load the steamer. I have tried fishing to beguile the time when we halt,
as we
have no books or papers; but the fish break my line, and as yet I have done
nothing,
nor have I been successful with my long shots with the rifle from the steamer,
and I
am not able to walk on shore.
  "Friday, 5.-A gale of wind against us. Tow-ropes snapping. Country
very flat.
Through my glass I make out great herds of antelopes and buffaloes. On 6th
of June
we passed Mount Arakol, and our Arab doctor left us to join a detachment
of troops.
We were regaled with thunder-storms and strong head-winds. The crew troublesome,
and Kemp, who is very energetic, has plenty to mind in seeing they do not
shirk their
work. On the night of the 7th woke up to find a regular imeivte, for while
we were
asleep the men quietly made the boat fast for the night beside a village.
But Kemp
was aroused from his sleep and forced them to start again. Their excuse was
that
they had nothing to eat, and wanted to procure food at the village, but we
were as-
sured at starting that there were provisions for three months on board. Next
day
passed through country like an English park, with fine trees to the water's
edge,
swarming with monkeys.
   "Tuesday, June 9.-Arrived at the island of Abba. Caught a very odd
fish like a
 carp, only he had two feelers from his upper jaw and two smaller below,
a black head
 as hard as iron, and a whitish body. He grunted when taken out of the water.
The
 soldiers came up in a body to say they had not enough to eat, and we held
a court
 of inquiry. They showed us a large coarse biscuit each, and said that was
their ration
 for a day. The captain was sent for, and stated that the provisions, calculated
to last
 three months for the soldiers, consisted of these biscuits at the rate of
one and a half
 per diem. So it was plain any way they were being deprived of one-third
of their
 wretched rations. We ordered them to get three biscuits each, and the poor
fellows
 went away quite contented. We intend to present them with sheep at Fashoda.
I
 don't think our English soldiers would have given the biscuits to the pigs
in a farm-
-yard at home. Certainly they would not have eaten them but for very hunger.
The
villages here are pretty numerous-all like groups of hay-cocks. The river-banks
piled
in places with heaps of merchandise waiting for transport.
    Wednesday, 10.-Lost twenty-sik hours in getting in wood at this island
of Abba.
 A few hours after we started this morning, a man appeared running along
the bank
 and making signals. We let him come up and took him on board, almost dead
with
 fatigue, for it turned out to be ofre of our pilots whom we should have
taken up at his
 village two days ago, and there he had been running and walking after us
for forty-
 eight hours continuously, and would have perished only for our delay. You
see there
 is fine stuff in these fellows, as it was our own lookout if we went without
him. The
 river here changed its character, and becomes lost in marshy land, and there
are many
 islands. Floating plants and beds of weeds come down the stream, and it
seemed to
 swarm with hippopotamuses. One fellow dived below the steamer and must have
 had a blow of the paddle, for he threw himself like a huge fish clean out
of the water.
 As we got on, the plains appeared covered with herds of cattle, and here
and there we
 saw natives with very long spears capering about. But the engineer, who
knows the
 country, says that a few years ago all the way to Fashoda you would have
seen the
 country full of natives, Shillooks, Denkas, &c., and herds in swarms,
but that they
 are disappearing, as the Egyptians took their cattle. The natives never
kill a beast
 unless he is going to die. but live on the milk and curds, and fine food
it must be, for
 they are great, strong fellows.
   "Thursday, 11.-Passed Mount Emalia, a fine, bold object, but made
slow progress
 against the current, which grew stronger. Our boats are a great strain on
us. Some
 Shillooks, who are said to be very warlike, and great pillagers, came down
to us and
 seemed to be very friendly. They had no clothes to speak of, but made the
most of
 their hair, which was done up in a peculiar way into a kind of flap round
the head and
 over the ears, so as to form a kind of umbrella for the neck and face projecting
in a
 thick mat, which must be splendid covert for insects. They carried long
spears, with
 long and broad heart-shaped blades, and sticks with iron spikes at the end,
but had no
 shields. We took seven of them, with their goats, on board in one of our
boats as
 passengers to Fashoda, at which they were delighted-the Shillooks, not the
goats, for
 the latter objected decidedly to the water. We had a strong breeze, almost
a gale,
 from the south. Magnificent crested cranes stalking by the river. I had
several shots
 at hippos about two hundred yards away, but they were mere snap chances
at their
 heads, and as the steamer is not steady I could not make a hit. This evening,
when
 we stopped to wood, Kemp and I weiit after some buffaloes, as I am uorr
able to walk
 a little, but they scented the soldiers and went off. I returned on board
and took to
 fishing, and caught a splendid fellow, twelve-pound weight, who showed great
sport.