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CHAPTER XXI.
FERTILITY OF THE COUNTRY ON THE BANKS OF THE RAHAD.
WE daily followed the banks of the Rahad, the monotony of which
I will not inflict upon the public. This country was a vast tract
of wonderfully fertile prairie, that nearly formed an island,
surrounded by the Rahad, Blue Nile, Great Nile, and Atbara; it
was peopled by various tribes of Arabs, who cultivated a
considerable extent upon the banks of the Rahad, which for
upwards of a hundred miles to the north were bordered with
villages at short intervals. Cotton and tobacco were produced
largely, and we daily met droves of camels laden with these
goods, en route for the Abyssinian market. We had now fairly
quitted Abyssinian territory, and upon our arrival at the Rahad
we were upon the soil of Upper Egypt. I was much struck with the
extraordinary size and condition of the cattle. Corn (dhurra) was
so plentiful that it was to be purchased in any quantity for
eight piastres the rachel, or about 1s. 8d. for 500 pounds;
pumpkins were in great quantities, with a description of gourd
with an exceedingly strong shell, which is grown especially for
bowls and other utensils; camel-loads of these gourd-basins
packed in conical crates were also journeying on the road towards
Gallabat.
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