as we
christened our caravan, arrived, the camels quietly waited awhile
after their burdens were taken from their humps. Then, as if an
afterthought had struck them, they slowly approached the scoop-outs
and with the most indifferent air would take a mouthful of the liquid,
then, stiffening their necks, they would lift their heads and calmly
survey the scenery around them, till their drivers would draw their
attention to the fact that there was at least another draught of water
in the pool. It should be remembered that these animals had just come
off a continuous journey of nearly fifteen hours, without a halt, and
had been for three whole days without water.

We left our camping ground as the sun began to dip behind the hills
shutting in the khor. Our way now lay in a more northeasterly
direction, and the sun threw the hills and valleys we were approaching
into a marvelous medley of glorious color, and more than one of us
regretted that we had not brought our color boxes with us. Sometimes
we seemed to catch a glimpse of the heather-clad Highlands of
Scotland. Then a twist in the khor we were traversing suggested the
rugged passes of Afghanistan. Gazelle and ariel stole among the foot
hills or stood gazing at us as near as a stone's throw. One of our
party, Mr. Gwynne, commenced stalking a gazelle, but, darkness setting
in, the beast got away. For the rest of the journey to Suakim,
however, he had good sport, and saved us many a time from going hungry
with his shooting for the pot.

About 34 miles from Ariab we came to one of the most interesting spots
of the whole journey--the extensive Valley of Khokreb, wherein lay the
deserted dervish dem, or stronghold. Here some followers of Osman
Digna used to levy toll on all caravans and persons moving toward
Suakim, or taking routes south. The dem consisted of a number of well
built tokuls, or straw huts, standing in their compounds, with
stabling for horses and pounds for cattle. The whole was surrounded
with a staked wall, in front of which was a zariba of prickly mimosa
bush, to stop a sudden onrush of an enemy. The place was intact, but
there was not a living soul within it, or in the vast valley in which
it stood, that we could see. In fact, our whole journey up to the
present seemed to be through a country that might have been ravished
by some plague or bore some fatal curse. As the light of the moon
prevailed, we came upon an extensive plain shelving upward toward