Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1874-05-15

places, without hardly perceiving that
you are crossing mountains, SO gentle
are the grades of the wadies which
lead from one slope to the other. In
fact, in travelling, you sometimes pass a
summit level between lofty mountains
without knowing it, unless you consult
the aneroid, and you find out you are
descending instead of ascending only
by noticing that the drift-wood, grass,
etc., washed down by the high waters,
are in front of the trees which you ap-
proach instead of behind them, as is
the case when you ascend.
On the 10th of December at Berenice,
where we were then camped. On the
18th, early in the morning, [ took a
last bath in the waves of the Red Sea,
which were just pleasantly cool and
that day we moved camp to the south,
about 10 miles. After a few days we
moved again still further, to the en-
trance of Wady Hodar, with the noun
tains behind us and the sea about three
miles in front but its waters were no
longer in demand for bathing purpo-
ses. for the weather had turned cool,
(for this country the thermometer
falling to so degrees in the night and
rising to 70 degrees in the day, some
times to 80 degrees. In this position
we waited until the 18th of January,
for supplies from the Nile before we
could commence our march towards
Berber. This was a pleasant camp !;
the lovely sea in full sight with It's
waters, bright green inside of the coral
reefs, and intensely blue beyond-the
separation being marked by a white
line of surf. On our left was the beau
tiful Gulf of Berenice and on our right
the lofty peaks of the Pentedactylus,
so-called by the Greeks for their re-
semblance to the five fingers of a hui
man hand. The Wady Hodar was the
| first of those wooded and grassy val
legs that had met our view. We had
had in November seventeen days du-
ring which It rained more or less over
all the Arabian range, and this had
started and refreshed the vegetation.
The valley was full of kind of broom
or genet, very much like the "Scoth
broom, but bearing little five point
ed star flower of perfect form, green
ish yellow color and most delightful
odor. The Arabs call it the merk. Its
fragrance perfumed the whole valley.
The great rush of waters flowing to
the sea through all these valleys had
brought great quantity of dead wood
SO that we had abundance of fuel.
Nothing could be more picturesque
than the view presented at night. The
moon would rise from the waters lust
before us and be brilliantly reflected
from the sparkling waves; mingled
with its light, the glare of a hundred
camp fires, around which Bedwins.
soldiers and camels were continually
| t1lttluu Wa Snopf about two xr,o,1r.
and had our Christmas dinner and
New Years dinner there. 1 need not
say what loving thoughts and wishes
and memories about all the loved ones
at home filed our hearts. On Xmas
day, we had visit from all the Arab
officers and Bedwin Scheiks in honor
OF the day. You know the Mussul-
mans venerate our Saviour, Issa. rs
they call Jesus in Arabic, as the proph-
ct next i'll degree to Mahomet. We
had for dinner tia day fine old
English ham, brought and saved from
Cairo for the occasion and IL splendid
| turkey though we had neither egg
| nogg nor punch, we enjoyed otu selves
very we'll. On New Years day. we re-
| celved visit as before, for the Arabs
| are very punctilious in presenting their
compliments on our feast days and we
| return it on theirs. Afterwards, there
was target firing for the soldiers, with
prizes for the best shots.
SHOOTING ON THE SEA SHORE AND THE
DESERT.
For the benefit of nv sporting
friends L will say a word about the
game to be found here. Along the sea-
shore are snipe and other birds of that
family / had about half a davis pood
shooting along the shore and bagged
sixteen, killing some from my drOma-
darys back; for where the sand was
firm l could ride him to the waters
edge. But no desert camel could be
made to put his foot in water; and the
moment the ground becomes moist
enough to be soft or slippery, he abso-
lutely refuses to go one step further.
After leaving the sea-shore we had
much better sport. There is all over
the deserts of Egypt a species of rock
cartridges, almost exactly like our
partridge, and a trifle larger; but their |
habits are very different. It is difficult |
to make them tiy, but they run with |
very great speed. Until the 1st of
February they go in focks- afterwards |
IN pairs. They are found in all the
wadies where there is good grass and
cover, and especially the merk bushes
that 1 mentioned above. They are
quite wild, however, and have gener-
ally to be taken at long shots. The
moment they perceive danger, they
run or fly to the foot of the mountains
on either side of the Wady, and begin
running up the rocks with astonishing
swiftness, till they r~acn the first
crests behind which they i;sappear.-
1t is next to impossible to get a flying
shot as they rise, for they hardly ever
do SO as near rs fifty yards; bnt gener-
ally much further; SO that by the time
You dismount and run to the foot of
the cliff which they are climbing, they
are pretty far mp and it is no use try
ing to get nearer, for they can run mp
five feet to your one. Thus, a great
many shots are fired in vain owing to
distance and those birds extreme te-
nacity of life; for unless they have
leg broken or are shot through the
head, they will run off with a whole
load of shot in them. Nevertheless.
we have killed quite a number. The
other day, without gong out of our
line of march or stopping to hunt
them, we killed twenty in Wady AL
lake. We have also seen number of
gazelles but always at very great dis
tances. Four wild goats or capricorns
rpora olSn caan o1sN co,no viii $685.. |