13TH. The Country Is Becoming Very Beautiful, And Furrowed By Deep Valleys;
The Underlying Rocks, Being Igneous, Have Yielded Fertile Soil.
There Is Great Abundance Of Large Game.
The buffaloes select open spots,
and often eminences, as standing-places through the day.
We crossed the Mbai,
and found in its bed rocks of pink marble. Some little hills near it
are capped by marble of beautiful whiteness, the underlying rock
being igneous. Violent showers occur frequently on the hills,
and cause such sudden sweeping floods in these rivulets, that five of our men,
who had gone to the other side for firewood, were obliged to swim back.
The temperature of the air is lowered considerably by the daily rains.
Several times the thermometer at sunrise has been as low as 68 Deg.,
and 74 Deg. at sunset. Generally, however, it stood at
from 72 Deg. to 74 Deg. at sunrise, 90 Deg. to 96 Deg. at midday,
and 80 Deg. to 84 Deg. at sunset. The sensation, however, as before remarked,
was not disagreeable.
14TH. We entered a most beautiful valley, abounding in large game.
Finding a buffalo lying down, I went to secure him for our food.
Three balls did not kill him, and, as he turned round as if for a charge,
we ran for the shelter of some rocks. Before we gained them,
we found that three elephants, probably attracted by the strange noise,
had cut off our retreat on that side; they, however, turned short off,
and allowed us to gain the rocks.
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