ficient quantities of corn, sesame, and beans to
serve for their livelihood; whilst the wild fruits and vegetables of
their country are so plentiful as to furnish almost sufficient food for
their maintenance should they be unable to cultivate. They possess
numbers of goats and cattle which supply them with milk and butter; they
are much addicted to drinking marissa (a kind of beer made from dhurra),
and great quantities of this beverage are consumed at their feasts,
principally at the feast known as Zubeir. On this occasion men and women
drink and dance together; but notwithstanding this unusual familiarity,
I never saw anything which might be considered an outrage to society.
With the exception of the Khojur, of whom I shall presently speak, and
the head sheikh, monogamy is practised.

The Nubas are governed entirely by their own traditional laws and
customs, the Khojur only intervening in case of necessity. The Khojur is
in reality a sort of religious chief, whose power over the people
depends entirely on his skilfulness and sagacity. During the time I was
in this neighbourhood the Khojur was a certain Kakum, known as "Kakum of
Delen."

Only a short time had elapsed since the Egyptian Government had made a
settlement at Delen. A company of Sudanese soldiers, under the command
of a captain who was appointed for the suppression of the slave-trade,
had been recently quartered there, and they were also charged with the
protection of our Mission station.

I was very happy in Delen, where I found a variety of pursuits to occupy
my time. I amused myself in collecting insects, of which I soon had a
large selection. I also skinned birds and snakes. The various modes of
Nuba life and cultivation were, moreover, an immense interest to me, and
the presentation of a few glass beads enabled me to secure many strange
objects in return. The natives used to roar with laughter when they saw
me examining with interest the curious insects they brought me.

We had quite a colony of blacks in the Mission, and as the number
increased, it became necessary to enlarge the accommodation, so we began
to make and burn bricks; we obtained lime from the Saburi mountain (I
may here say the Nubas gave us this information) and the doleb-palm
supplied us with plenty of wood. Assisted by Father Bonomi, our
carpenter Gabriel Mariani built a four-wheeled cart, which we drove with
two strong mules. We worked along cheerfully and full of hope. We turned