CHAPTER XIII.

LEAVE KASSALA—CHARACTER OF THE COUNTRY—MEET BENI-AMIR ARABS ON THE RIVER BED—THE BAOBOB TREE.

All being ready, we started off from Kassala at 3 p.m. on the 17th January, intending to reach Heikota within three days. We encamped at 8 p.m., and next day were off at 9 a.m., marching until 6 p.m.—temp. 90° in shade. Fine trees became more numerous; the country looked much greener, and water was usually obtainable every day simply by digging a few feet in the sandy river-bed. This day we passed through a large field of dhurra. To guard this from elephants, birds, and buffaloes¹ several platforms were erected² in different parts of the field about 10 or 12 feet high, and on these boys and men spent the whole day unsheltered from the scorching³ rays of the sun—which was like a ball of fire—cracking whips[161] and uttering hideous⁴ noises. We came across distinct and recent tracks of a lion, two full-grown and one young elephant. I also saw a few monkeys, a musk⁵ cat, several young tiger-cats and hundreds of guinea-fowl. We shot on the march one eagle, two ariels, and two gazelles; the latter are not so hard and dry as those in the desert.

THE KASSALA MOUNTAIN.

On the 19th we made the usual march, encamping at Ashberra. The general character of the country has now become much more varied⁶ and interesting. This day we travelled through tall grass, about 10 feet high, for a long time—perhaps an hour. When we got out of this we found ourselves encountering the prickly thorns of the mimosa and kittar bushes. We had now done with caravan⁷ routes entirely⁸, and my camel-riding capabilities⁹ were fully¹⁰ tested as I go up and down hill; now over rocky hills, down steep banks and across dry river-courses, then through a forest of dhoum palms, dodging¹¹ as I go the great projecting strong branches, which appear strong enough almost to decapitate or sweep me off my camel. Then, by way of variety, we pass through a mile or two of the horrid¹² cruel thorns of the mimosa and kittar trees, which every now and then bury themselves in my flesh, and tear my clothes and[162] helmet as I duck my head to avoid having my face lacerated. The camel, of course, walks on in the most unconcerned manner, just as if he was on open ground, taking no notice whatever of these obstructions¹³, but brushing past them as if they were twigs¹⁴ or straws. Everything, even the smallest of the mimosa tree, is armed with long, strong, very sharp thorns. Each thorn is as sharp as a needle and about an inch long; indeed, the native women use them as a cobbler does his awl¹⁵, and I have often seen a woman using the thorn to pierce a girba and shreds¹⁶ of the palm leaf to sew it up with. The thorns of the kittar bushes are quite semicircular in shape, very near to each other, not long but very strong, and each successive thorn crooks¹⁷ in a different direction to its predecessor—one crooks up and the other down. When they catch hold of anyone they stick to him as close as a brother. If my clothes get entangled¹⁸, I must stay and pick myself out, or if I elect to go on without doing so, I must submit to having my clothes, and perchance my flesh, effectually torn across. We saw en route a great many baboons¹⁹, vultures of course always, eagles, thousands of doves, guinea-fowl, and recent tracks of elephants, lions, and leopards²⁰. Mr. Phillipps and I, whilst stalking some gazelles in a large palm-grove, lost the caravan for hours, and just as we[163] emerged from it on to the wide river-bed of the Mareb we came upon a large number of the Beni-Amir tribe in that semi-nude condition, which is so fashionable amongst them, watering their goats and cattle. We dismounted and joined the sable²¹ throng²², made them understand that we should like some goat’s milk, which they gave us, after which we showed them our pocket and hunting knives, revolvers, and watches. We were at once surrounded by an admiring throng of our new acquaintances, who seemed greatly pleased with what they saw, but when I applied²³ my watch to the ear of one his surprise and delight was immense, for he had never in his life seen a watch before. The ticking tickled²⁴ him greatly, so much so that he pushed all his friends forward one after the other to participate in his joy. However, as the long bushy hair of these fellows was streaming with fat, I observed caution.

January 20th.—We were off at 9.30, and had not far to go ere we reached Heikota, where the Beni-Amir tribe then lived. This was the shortest march we ever made, for we arrived there at 11 a.m., amongst the most luxuriant vegetation, encamping just by a huge baobob tree (Adamsonia digitata), 51 feet in girth. Large as this may seem, it is not by any means as large as they grow—they are frequently[164] 60 to 85 feet in girth. The trunk is not above 12 feet high ere the branches are put forth²⁵. The flowers are in proportion to the size of the tree, and followed by a fruit about 10 inches long. This looks like a greenish pod or capsule, having a bloom on it such as we see on a plum; on breaking the capsule we find a large number of granular-like substances very much resembling pieces of white starch²⁶ packed closely together, which have an agreeable sub-acid flavour. When this white substance, which is very thin, is dissolved, and it does so readily in the mouth, we came to a dark, brownish little stone, very much like a tamarind stone in appearance, but smaller. When dry, the pulp²⁷, by which the seeds are surrounded, is powdered and brought to Europe from the Levant, under the name of terra sigillata lemnia—the seeds are called goui.

1 buffaloes   

n.水牛（分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种）( buffalo的名词复数 )；（南非或北美的）野牛；威胁；恐吓

参考例句：

• Some medieval towns raced donkeys or buffaloes. 有些中世纪的城市用驴子或水牛竞赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Water buffaloes supply Egypt with more meat than any other domestic animal. 水牛提供给埃及的肉比任何其它动物都要多。 来自辞典例句

2 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

3 scorching   

adj. 灼热的

参考例句：

• a scorching, pitiless sun 灼热的骄阳
• a scorching critique of the government's economic policy 对政府经济政策的严厉批评

4 hideous   

adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的

参考例句：

• The whole experience had been like some hideous nightmare.整个经历就像一场可怕的噩梦。
• They're not like dogs,they're hideous brutes.它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。

5 musk   

n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫

参考例句：

• Musk is used for perfume and stimulant.麝香可以用作香料和兴奋剂。
• She scented her clothes with musk.她用麝香使衣服充满了香味。

6 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

7 caravan   

n.大蓬车；活动房屋

参考例句：

• The community adviser gave us a caravan to live in.社区顾问给了我们一间活动住房栖身。
• Geoff connected the caravan to the car.杰弗把旅行用的住屋拖车挂在汽车上。

8 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

9 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

10 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

11 dodging   

n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避

参考例句：

• He ran across the road, dodging the traffic. 他躲开来往的车辆跑过马路。
• I crossed the highway, dodging the traffic. 我避开车流穿过了公路。 来自辞典例句

12 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

13 obstructions   

n.障碍物( obstruction的名词复数 )；阻碍物；阻碍；阻挠

参考例句：

• The absence of obstructions is of course an idealization. 没有障碍物的情况当然是一种理想化的情况。 来自辞典例句
• These obstructions could take some weeks to clear from these canals. 这些障碍物可能要花几周时间才能从运河中清除掉。 来自辞典例句

14 twigs   

细枝，嫩枝( twig的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some birds build nests of twigs. 一些鸟用树枝筑巢。
• Willow twigs are pliable. 柳条很软。

15 awl   

n.尖钻

参考例句：

• Six awl make a shoemaker.六个鞋砧，练出一个鞋匠。
• It was fun to play with an awl.玩钻子是件很有趣的事。

16 shreds   

v.撕碎，切碎( shred的第三人称单数 )；用撕毁机撕毁（文件）

参考例句：

• Peel the carrots and cut them into shreds. 将胡罗卜削皮，切成丝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I want to take this diary and rip it into shreds. 我真想一赌气扯了这日记。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

17 crooks   

n.骗子( crook的名词复数 )；罪犯；弯曲部分；（牧羊人或主教用的）弯拐杖v.弯成钩形( crook的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The police are getting after the crooks in the city. 警察在城里追捕小偷。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cops got the crooks. 警察捉到了那些罪犯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 entangled   

adj.卷入的；陷入的；被缠住的；缠在一起的v.使某人（某物/自己）缠绕，纠缠于（某物中），使某人（自己）陷入（困难或复杂的环境中）( entangle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The bird had become entangled in the wire netting. 那只小鸟被铁丝网缠住了。
• Some military observers fear the US could get entangled in another war. 一些军事观察家担心美国会卷入另一场战争。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 baboons   

n.狒狒( baboon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Baboons could break branches and leaders. 狒狒会折断侧枝和顶梢。 来自辞典例句
• And as nonprimates, they provoke fewer ethical and safety-related concerns than chimps or baboons. 而且作为非灵长类，就不会产生像用黑猩猩或狒狒那样的伦理和安全方面的顾虑。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 医学的第四次革命

20 leopards   

n.豹( leopard的名词复数 )；本性难移

参考例句：

• Lions, tigers and leopards are all cats. 狮、虎和豹都是猫科动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• For example, airlines never ship leopards and canaries on the same flight. 例如，飞机上从来不会同时运送豹和金丝雀。 来自英语晨读30分（初三）

21 sable   

n.黑貂；adj.黑色的

参考例句：

• Artists' brushes are sometimes made of sable.画家的画笔有的是用貂毛制的。
• Down the sable flood they glided.他们在黑黝黝的洪水中随波逐流。

22 throng   

n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集

参考例句：

• A patient throng was waiting in silence.一大群耐心的人在静静地等着。
• The crowds thronged into the mall.人群涌进大厅。

23 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

24 tickled   

（使）发痒( tickle的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）愉快，逗乐

参考例句：

• We were tickled pink to see our friends on television. 在电视中看到我们的一些朋友，我们高兴极了。
• I tickled the baby's feet and made her laugh. 我胳肢孩子的脚，使她发笑。

25 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

26 starch   

n.淀粉；vt.给...上浆

参考例句：

• Corn starch is used as a thickener in stews.玉米淀粉在炖煮菜肴中被用作增稠剂。
• I think there's too much starch in their diet.我看是他们的饮食里淀粉太多了。

27 pulp   

n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆

参考例句：

• The pulp of this watermelon is too spongy.这西瓜瓤儿太肉了。
• The company manufactures pulp and paper products.这个公司制造纸浆和纸产品。