The Banks Were
Fringed With Brab And Tamarisk, The Daum Palm And Green Rushes:
A clear
sparkling and shallow stream bisected the sandy bed, and smaller branches
wandered over the surface.
This river, the main drain of the Ghauts and
Sub-Ghauts, derives its name from the increased volume of the waters
during night: evaporation by day causes the absorption of about a hundred
yards. We found its temperature 73° Fahr. (in the air 78°), and our people
dug holes in the sand instead of drinking from the stream, a proof that
they feared leeches. [22] The taste of the water was bitter and nauseous.
[23]
Following the course of the Biyu Gora through two low parallel ranges of
conglomerate, we entered a narrow gorge, in which lime and sandstone
abound. The dip of the strata is about 45° west, the strike north and
south. Water springs from under every stone, drops copiously from the
shelves of rock, oozes out of the sand, and bubbles up from the mould. The
temperature is exceedingly variable: in some places the water is icy cold,
in others, the thermometer shows 68° Fahr., in others, 101°--the maximum,
when we visited it, being 126°. The colours are equally diverse. Here, the
polished surface of the sandstone is covered with a hoar of salt and
nitre. [24] There, where the stream does not flow, are pools dyed
greenish-black or rust-red by iron sediment. The gorge's sides are a vivid
red: a peculiar creeper hangs from the rocks, and water trickles down its
metallic leaves.
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