March 18.—Doctor Oudney thinking himself a little improved in health, he determined on seeing the sheikh the next day, on the subject of his departure for Soudan; for myself, I was but too happy for the present in having received no refusal from the sheikh to my proposition of accompanying the ghrazzie. I had previously determined, whether I should succeed in this object or not, that I would as yet ask no other favour; as I felt assured that only by slow degrees and a patient cultivation of the friendship of El Kanemy, our ultimate objects could be accomplished. I was not, therefore, greatly surprised to find that the sheikh gave this morning a decided refusal to Doctor Oudney’s request of accompanying the kafila to Soudan. A Shouaa chief, Dreess-aboo Raas-ben-aboo-Deleel, whose people had their tents close to the Shary, visited me to-day. I found him a very intelligent cunning fellow: he put a hundred questions, and, strange to say, asked for nothing as a gift. I, however, gave him a looking-glass, with which he was much pleased. He and his people had passed over from the service of the sultan of Waday to that of our sheikh, three years ago: he told me that the Sultan of Begharmi was preparing to rebuild his capital, Kernuck; and from this man I obtained a route and plan of the branches of the Shary, close to Begharmi. March 26.—I had another visit from my new ally this morning, who came alone, and assured me the sheikh was not willing that we should see any of the country to the south of the Shary; that my liberality to him yesterday had made him take an oath to be my friend; and that if I would lay my hand on that book, pointing to my own journal, that holy book, he said he would tell me what order the sheikh had given him with respect to his conduct on our arriving in his district,—which was, that we were not to cross the river. He, however, added, that if I chose to pass the Shary and come to his tents, which were at a place called Kerga, he would find means of sending me still farther south. “If you leave the Shary,” said he, “when the sun is three fathoms high, you will be with me by sunset.” I questioned him as to the danger of incurring the sheikh’s displeasure; but he did not prevaricate, and his reply was “there were three brothers of them, and the sheikh wanted to bring them all over to his service, and that it was not his interest to quarrel with them.” March 28.—Doctor Oudney was getting worse and worse: he had applied a blister to his chest in consequence of the violence of his cough; but he was so weak as not to be able to move from one hut to another. His principal food was a little flour and water paste, and sometimes a little soup at night. Boo-Khaloom saw us after prayers; he said that he had determined on dismissing about thirty of the most rebellious Arabs, and they were about to return to Mourzuk.