It was
refreshing for all parties to obtain pure water after the miserable
fluid we had lately been compelled to drink.
In the evening a sheik and several people, who had known me formerly,
crossed the river from the Unyoro side, and desired an interview. They
reported that the Khartoum traders had almost destroyed the country, and
they begged me simply to judge with my own eyes.
I must now extract from my journal the entry of the date, as, although
briefly written, it will convey the impression of the moment: -
"March 23, 1872. - We marched three miles east, along the banks of the
beautiful Victoria Nile, through fine open forest, until we halted on a
high cliff exactly opposite, the last station of Abou Saood, commanded
by a vakeel named Suleiman.
"It is impossible to describe the change that has taken place since I
last visited this country. It was then a perfect garden, thickly
populated, and producing all that man could desire. The villages were
numerous; groves of plantains fringed the steep cliff's on the river's
bank; and the natives were neatly dressed in the bark cloth of the
country.
"The scene has changed!
"All is wilderness!
