From the Cape to Cairo; the first traverse of Africa from south to north . a double-barrelled drop-kick, backed by a pair of iron-shod ammuni-tion boots. I was surprised to find how weak he was, despite his colossalstature. The othei-s took it as a huge joke, and an hour afterwards hereturned and behaved himself very well, on the morrow guiding me forsome miles. From here the country changes completely, opening out into a limitlessplain, dotted here and there with clumps of borassus palm, growing onsmall, flat-topped eminences which are the only possible channel (which I ch
From the Cape to Cairo; the first traverse of Africa from south to north . a double-barrelled drop-kick, backed by a pair of iron-shod ammuni-tion boots. I was surprised to find how weak he was, despite his colossalstature. The othei-s took it as a huge joke, and an hour afterwards hereturned and behaved himself very well, on the morrow guiding me forsome miles. From here the country changes completely, opening out into a limitlessplain, dotted here and there with clumps of borassus palm, growing onsmall, flat-topped eminences which are the only possible channel (which I christened the Gertrude Nile, and which had neverhitherto been more than half-a-mile from the bush) bends away to thewest and spreads out into large marshes, though its course is still obvious,and the plain, which is a mass of matted, half-burnt reed, hippo andelephant-holes, is scored with numerous narrow channels of water andmud, and towards the bush, which is soon at least fifteen miles from theriver, is covered with small ant-hills. There is an enormous population on. IN DINKA-LAND 285 these plains, with huge herds of cattle and goats, though it is impossible tosay where they live, and they are wonderfully clever at hiding their cattle,and light smoke fires to prevent them from making a noise. I marchedfor hours without seeing a native, but when pitching camp I could seehundreds and hundreds advancing in Indian file from all directions, or if Itook a line that led far from water, a group would appear like magic toput me right. There was something uncanny about knowing that onewas watched by hundreds without ever seeing more than an occasionalindividual perched on one leg, the other foot resting on his knee, on thetop of a far ant-hill, and looking like a long black stork. The first daythat I camped in the plain I was visited by at least a thousand natives. With the exception of one or two slight fracas with my boys, they werewell-behaved, and I bought a large supply of fish;
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