Of the largest trees the most conspicuous are the darei, a fig-tree, and the gób, a very large thorny tree growing on the banks of river-beds, with edible berries of an orange colour, the size of a cherry, and containing a large stone. In taste they resemble apples, and are delicious eating. The tomaiyo is a root like a knotted swede, growing three inches below the surface in the soft red soil of the Haud and Ogádén. It is green and purple outside, and inside consists of a white watery pulp which will allay thirst. This plant is difficult to find, and has to be burrowed for. Armo, a vividly green creeper with large, fleshy, heart-shaped leaves, covers all the trees by the river-beds, hanging festooned like a curtain, and turning the gudá thorn-trees into natural shady bowers. Of the three best grasses already mentioned as growing in the Haud, the durr grows to about six feet, the darémo to about fifteen inches, and dihe to about four inches. All these grasses curl and twist about very much, the durr spreading out into branches like a bush. The favourite cover chosen by a lion is in nine cases out of ten either durr grass, khansa forest, or the reeds (alálo) growing at the margin of a river-bed.
The Somáli climate is on the whole very dry and bracing, and there is no malarial fever to speak of except on the Webbe Shabéleh river.
In the Maritime hills the highest shade temperature I have registered is 118° Fahr. at midday, and on the cool elevated Haud country the temperature just before sunrise has often been as low as 56° in June. The lowest temperature I ever registered was 49°.
During the months of July, August, and September 1892, my brother took daily five or six observations with barometer and thermometer. The following shade temperatures, taken at random from his tables, may be of interest:—
| Date. | Place. | Elevation in feet above sea-level. | Time. | Thermometer. °Fahr. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 4-8 | Berbera | 35 | 8 A.M. | 94½ |
| 12.15 P.M. | 99 | |||
| 6 P.M. | 99½ | |||
| 9.30 P.M. | 95 | |||
| ” 17-20 | Hargeisa Wells | 3938 | 6.30 A.M. | 67 |
| 8 A.M. | 67 | |||
| Noon. | 82 | |||
| 5.25 P.M. | 80 | |||
| 9.5 P.M. | 74½ | |||
| ” 23 | Kheidub-Ayéyu (Haud) | 3841 | 1.30 A.M. | 56 |
| 5 A.M. | 61 | |||
| Noon. | 83 | |||
| 9 P.M. | 75 | |||
| ” 25-28 | Gagáb (Milmil) | 3429 | 5 A.M. | 63 |
| Noon. | 85 | |||
| 2.30 P.M. | 82 | |||
| 9 P.M. | 68 | |||
| August 8-10 | Waror (Jerer Valley) | 4161 | 4 A.M. | 59 |
| 6.30 A.M. | 63 | |||
| 9.30 A.M. | 69½ | |||
| 1 P.M. | 84 | |||
| 3 P.M. | 85 | |||
| ” 31 | Harrhé | 5761 | 1 P.M. | 80 |
| 2 P.M. | 75 | |||
| Sept. 3-5 | Makanis (Marar Prairie) | 6209 | 6 A.M. | 56 |
| 7 P.M. | 65 | |||
| ” 9 | Kalerug | 6310 | 3.30 P.M. | 72½ |
| ” 10 | Sarir Gerád | 6330 | 6 A.M. | 56 |
| ” 24 | Biyo Kabóba | 3353 | Noon. | 103½ |
| ” 25-26 | Hassein Gedíchi | 2252 | 5 A.M. | 67 |
| ” 30 | Lehellu | 10 | 2 P.M. | 93 |
| October 4 | Zeila | 45 | 3 A.M. | 84 |
| 10 P.M. | 85 |
Glossary of Geographical Names
The names have been spelt in accordance with the Royal Geographical Society’s system, vowels having an Italian pronunciation, ei being pronounced as in the English word “weight,” and so forth.
The following will occur often in geographical names, some being modern terms, others having fallen into disuse in ordinary conversation:—