The Wind Was North-Easterly; And Both Monsoons Bring Heavy
Rains.
At Yafir, on the summit of the hill, Lieutenant Speke's thermometer showed
an altitude of about 7500 feet.
The people of the country do not know what
ice means. Water is very scarce in these hills, except during the monsoon:
it is found in springs which are far apart; and in the lower slopes
collected rain water is the sole resource. This scarcity renders the
habits of the people peculiarly filthy.
After descending about 2000 feet from the crest of the mountains to the
southern fall, Lieutenant Speke entered upon the platform which forms the
country of the Eastern Somal. He is persuaded that the watershed of this
extensive tract is from N.W. to S.E., contrary to the opinion of
Lieutenant Cruttenden, who, from information derived from the Somal,
determined the slope to be due south. "Nogal" appears, according to
Lieutenant Speke, to be the name of a tract of land occupied by the
Warsingali, the Mijjarthayn, and the northern clan of the Dulbahantas, as
Bohodlay in Haud is inhabited by the southern. Nogal is a sterile table-
land, here and there thinly grown with thorns, perfectly useless for
agriculture, and, unless it possess some mineral wealth, valueless. The
soil is white and stony, whereas Haud or Ogadayn is a deep red, and is
described as having some extensive jungles. Between the two lies a large
watercourse, called "Tuk Der," or the Long River. It is dry during the
cold season, but during the rains forms a flood, tending towards the
Eastern Ocean. This probably is the line which in our maps is put down as
"Wady Nogal, a very fertile and beautiful valley."
The surface of the plateau is about 4100 feet above the level of the sea:
it is a space of rolling ground, stony and white with broken limestone.
Water is found in pools, and in widely scattered springs: it is very
scarce, and in a district near and south of the hills Lieutenant Speke was
stopped by want of this necessary. The climate appeared to our traveller
delightful In some places the glass fell at 6 A.M. to 25°, yet at noon on
the same day the mercury rose to 76°. The wind was always N. E., sometimes
gentle, and occasionally blowing strongly but without dust. The rainy
monsoon must break here with violence, and the heat be fearful in the hot
season. The principal vegetation of this plateau was Acacia, scarce and
stunted; in some places under the hills and in the watercourses these
trees are numerous and well grown. On the other hand, extensive tracts
towards the south are almost barren. The natives speak of Malmal (myrrh)
and the Luban (incense) trees. The wild animals are principally antelopes;
there are also ostriches, onagers, Waraba, lions (reported to exist),
jackals, and vermin. The bustard and florikan appear here. The Nomads
possess large flocks of sheep, the camels, cows, and goats being chiefly
found at this season on the seaward side of the hills, where forage is
procurable.
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