Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 4.djvu/583

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THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. s^S

From this day, fubordination; though not entirely ceafcd, was faft on the decUne ; all was difcontent, murmuring, and fear. Our water was greatly diminifhed, and that terrible death by thirft began to flare us in the face, and this was owing in a great meafure to our own imprudence. Ifmael, who had been left centinel over the fkins of water, had llept fo foundly, that this had given an opportunity to a Tucorory to open one of the fkins that had not been touch- ed, and ferve himfelf out of it at his own difcretion. I fup- pofe that, hearing fomebody ftir, and fearing detecT:ion, he had withdrawn himfelf as fpeedily as pofTible, without ta- king time to tie the mouth of the girba, which we found in the morning with fcarce a quart of water in it.

On the 15th, at a quarter paft feven in the morning wc left Waadi Dimokea, keeping a little to the weftvvard of north, as far as I could judge, jufl upon the hne of Syene. The fame ridge of hills being on our right and left as yeflerday, in the center of thefe appeared Del Aned. At twenty minutes pafl two o'clock in the afternoon we came to an opening in the ridge of rocks ; the paffage is about a mile broad, through which we continued till we alight- ed at the foot of the mountain Del Aned. The place is call- ed Waadi Del Aned.

The fame appearance of moving pillars of fand prefent- ed themfelves to us this day in form and difpofition like thofe we had feen at Waadi Halboub, only they feemed to be more in number, and lefs in fize. They came feveral times in a direction dole upon us ; that is, I believe, with- in lefs than two miles. They began, immediately after fun-rife, like a thick wood, and alniofl darkened the fun :

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