18th March.—We sail at a quarter before seven o’clock with a cold north-east wind S.E., and then S. by E. and S. The wind, however, becomes too powerful; twice are we driven on oyster-beds—that is, on those thorn muscles, as if over stones, and have reefed sails to prevent the ships from going to pieces, their condition being so bad. A quarter after seven. From S. by E. to the left. Visible sand-banks in the curve seem to block up our road, but we managed to pass by them on the right, with the assistance of the sails, close to the left shore towards S.E., and away in the bend to E. by S. Half-past seven. S.E. by E., and then a quarter before eight right round; six huntsmen’s tokuls being near a sand-bank on the lower shore of the projection of the left side of the river. We halt on the left by a shallow island clothed with low verdure towards S.S.W., and intend to stop here to-day and to-morrow to make observations, and the most needful repairs to the vessels and sails. Suliman Kashef shot yesterday evening, at a gazelle-hunt, a large antelope, called by the Arabs Tete, in the foreleg, shattering it to pieces; the animal fell twice, but made off at last on three legs. Sabatier and I had chosen the left wing, and concealed ourselves with one of my servants in the high grass: the former fired and missed. The cracked earth displayed a magnificent soil: the grass, standing thickly in tufts, reached up to our breast, and was a great obstacle at the beginning of our rapid march. It was still green at the bottom, and the present desiccation of the ground, on which we remarked everywhere the traces of footsteps of wild beasts, and their dung, might therefore have only taken place a short time. This grass, narrow and three-edged, with cylindrical spikes, formed the principal produce of the soil. Less common was the grass similar to our species with flat two-edged leaves; it had knotty stalks like the three-edged, but a couple of spikes grew together on each blade (I have remarked this previously), which unfortunately were not yet at maturity, and therefore very small. The third species of grass consisted of slender reeds, cropped and sprouting anew, or trod on the ground. I perceived, also, some bamie growing wild, and birds’ nests of grass hanging on it. I had lost sight of my comrade; and although at the commencement of my excursion I had seen the vessels sailing up the river at my side, it soon became dark. Suliman Kashef, however, had the sagacity on his return to the vessels, to order the reeds to be set on fire as signals, so that luckily I found my way back, though sinking every now and then up to the knees into the deep foot-prints of hippopotami close to the river,—a further proof that the shores, being only slightly elevated, form shallow lakes here at the rainy season, which are not dried up so soon.