The excessive heat rendered a thunderstorm which we had in the afternoon of the second day highly acceptable, especially as the heavy gale was followed by a light rain, which greatly relieved the burning heat of the sandy soil. It was highly amusing to me to observe also, this time, that although a large leathern tent had been pitched for the Sheikh, nevertheless, as was always the case when a thunderstorm arose, everybody hastened to carry his treasures, especially the saddles and books, under cover of my small European tent, which had now withstood more than four years’ exposure to the weather, and was mended and patched in such a manner that the original material was scarcely discernible. [Sidenote: Friday, June 2nd.] We at length left this place, but only to move on a distance of seven or eight miles, to an encampment of a wealthy man of the name of Sídi Ílemín, who, although belonging to the tribe of the Fúlbe, was living amongst the Tawárek, and had been settled in the place for a great many years. The contrast between the open river, bordered by the green grassy lowlands, which at present had been laid bare by the retiring waters, and the bleak desert which closely approached it, was very remarkable, especially a short distance before we reached the encampment, where an extensive sandy eminence excluded for a while the view of the river, and with a few scattered bushes of the poisonous fernán, and the short herbage called “ellob,” made one fancy oneself transported into the heart of the desert. Along the former part of our road the low shore of the river had been clothed with a profusion of excellent býrgu, but here there was none, and the poor camels again fared very badly. In the whole of this district along the river, where trees are very scanty, the camel is reduced to the diet of býrgu, although it by no means agrees with animals accustomed to the food of the young acacia trees and the dry herbage of the desert. All circumstances considered, my camels were in a very bad condition, and there was good reason for my kind friend and protector looking about for some fresh animals to enable me to reach more favoured regions. He therefore determined to set out from this point to the nearest of his “kissib,” or herds of camels, while we were to wait for him at a place called Tin-sherífen. The river, which, in its present state, was about 900 yards from our camp, had here a very shallow, and not at all an imposing appearance, although a few miles below it enters a very rocky district, where it is enclosed by steep banks and broken by islets and cliffs. Four boats were lying on the shore. The place was called Igómaren.