13. Itinerary of the Bahr El Ghazal River.
Lake No—Meshra El Rek.
| Place. | Miles. | Description. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inter-mediate. | From W. end Lake No. | ||
| Lake No | — | — | Proceeding up-stream westwards from thejunction of the Bahr El Jebel and the White Nile, Lake No isimmediately entered. Lake No is known to the Arabs as the“Moghren-el-Buhur,” or the “Meeting of the Rivers.” It is situatedin north latitude 9° 29′. It is a shallow expanse of water coveringa good many square miles of area, and surrounded on all sides byreedy marsh. It is probably a portion of the great lake which oncecovered this country. Through its eastern end the Bahr El Jebelpasses, and the Bahr El Ghazal enters it at its western extremity.Lake No acts as a reservoir for the waters of the sluggish streamswhich drain the extensive plateaux forming the watershed betweenthe Congo and the Nile. These streams find their rise in an arealying between latitude 5° and 8° north, and longitude 24° and 30°east. The channel by which their united waters are delivered to theNile is the Bahr El Ghazal, and from it the province through whichit passes receives its name. Its chief affluents are the Rohl, theJau, and the Tonj on the right, and the Bahr El Arab, the Bahr ElHomr, and the Jur on the left. The water thus brought down fills upthe depression known as Lake No, over which area the water of theBahr El Jebel spreads. The consequence is that this lake is anexpanse of water through which little or no current passes, butwhose levels rise and fall with that of the Nile. The flooded areachanges according to the season of the year. It forms an importantreservoir for the White Nile. The actual extent of Lake No isdifficult to ascertain. It has been variously estimated at from 20to 40 square miles. These differences are probably due to the factthat the area was estimated at different periods of the year.During maximum flood the extent cannot be much less than the largerestimate, but at the period of low supply the area is much reduced,and in 1900 and 1901 could hardly have exceeded 8 square miles. Inthe early months of these years the surface had shrunk to verysmall dimensions, and more resembled a large river than a lake. Thewidth, during the period of low Nile, is extremely variable. Thusin April, 1901, in the first mile from the White Nile, the openwater surface was at times under 200 yards, and then suddenlywidened out to, perhaps, 2 miles; a little further on it againcontracted, and for 4 or 5 miles more varied from 300 to 600 yards.The depth, at that time, was nowhere more than 7 feet, and, inplaces, only 4 feet. No current at all was visible through anyportion of the lake. Beyond the open water stretched a broad beltof flooded reeds. This belt was chiefly composed of “Um Suf,” withclumps of ambach. The open water itself was full of reedy islands.Lake No abounds with hippopotami and waterfowl. The former cause agood deal of trouble to the Nuer population, as they are unusuallysavage in this locality, and are said to make a practice ofattacking any canoe or raft crossing the lake. The bank to thenorth of the eastern end swarms with lion and antelope of everydescription (January, 1903). |
| After passing the entrance to the Bahr ElJebel, keep to the northern channel. Open water right and a few lowbushes; ant-heaps (termites), and dry ground left. Some wood.Landing possible. At 6 miles from the White Nile a continuous lineof Nuer villages runs parallel to the left bank of the channel forseveral miles, and marks the ridge beyond which the swamping doesnot extend. Their average distance is some 2 miles from the river.The villages appear to be thickly populated, and the inhabitantspossess large herds of cattle, sheep, and goats; they now bartertheir fowls, &c., with readiness. | |||
| From 7 miles above the White Nile—Bahr ElJebel junction (whilst still within Lake No) and westwards thechannel is, in dry weather, reduced to 80 or 90 yards wide. Inflood-time the line of the channel is not visible. This channel isby some termed the Khor El Deleb, in continuation of a khor of thatname which flows into it at the western end of Lake No; but as theBahr El Ghazal is obviously the main stream, the latter name hasbeen applied to it here from the Bahr El Jebel junction westwards.About 10 miles west of the Bahr El Jebel mouth take southernchannel, which comes in west-south-west, leave northern channel, asit closes up and comes to a dead end 5 miles on. Large village,Nuer tribe, 2 miles away left. Scrub on horizon left. Reeds, sudd,&c., both sides, and all part of Lake No. | |||
| Bahr El Ghazal | 0 | 0 | The true Bahr ElGhazal comes in close here left. Narrow mouth, 40 yards; 8 feetdeep in March. Sudd seen floating down stream, 1½ miles an hour.Leave broad open channel, which bifurcates 2 miles farther on, andbecomes the Deleb and Signorina backwaters, ending 18 miles up.Take northern channel, which is now the Bahr El Ghazal. The KhorDeleb, which enters the river from the south at the western pointof the lake, is a wide expanse of channel 150 to 200 yards in breadth. Itforms the outlet for the waters of the River Rohl, coming from thesouth. In summer no current at all is apparent. The Ghazal River atthis point, with a width of some 40 yards, is in appearance a moreinsignificant stream than the other. Its depth, however, isgreater, averaging 13 feet, as against 6 or 7 feet in the Deleb.The Khor Deleb was explored by Major Peake for some 18 miles abovethis junction. At this point it was blocked by sudd and reeds, withtrees on both banks, so that further progress was impossible. Ithad, however, a decided stream coming through the reeds, which leftthe Ghazal 33 miles higher up. The transparency of the watersdiffers in the two channels; that of the Khor Deleb being opaqueand of a whitey-grey colour, while that of the Bahr El Ghazal isclear and limpid, like that of the White Nile itself. Between thetwo rivers, which run parallel for some distance, is an expanse oflow marsh, a foot above low- water level. This whole area mustresemble a large lake when the rivers are in flood, and the aspectof the country is desolate and monotonous to an extreme degree. Itis absolutely treeless; the atmosphere is damp and warm even in thewinter months, and the mosquitoes are of a peculiarly venomousvariety. |
| River Rohl or Khor Deleb | 2 | 2 | |
| Mayyet Eléri | 16 | 18 | Proceeding up theBahr El Ghazal, for a long way there is little change in thelandscape. The low banks continue, and the stream winds aboutthrough the marshes with a very feeble velocity. At 18 miles alarge khor joins the Bahr El Ghazal on the left bank. This is knownas the Mayyet Eléri, and appears to come from a north-westerlydirection. It is this khor which has been supposed to be thejunction between the Bahr El Ghazal and the Lollé. From the slopeof the country, however, it would seem that water flows from thehigher land into the Bahr El Ghazal. It is possible that in floodthere may be a spill in the opposite direction. This khor, although200 yards in width, is very shallow. At 21 miles the Khor Delebapproaches to within 1,200 yards of the Bahr El Ghazal. A solitarydeleb palm (mentioned by Junker) forms a fine landmark on the rightbank. The Khor Deleb derives its name from this palm. The left bankof the river beyond the fringe of swamp is an extensive grass plaincovered with ant-hills. These are so close together that theysomewhat resemble a gigantic grave-yard. The Nuer villages are nowa long way from the bank. As the river is ascended the countrybecomes more and more hopeless-looking. Flat grass plains extend tothe horizon, and a wide band of swamp borders either side of thewaterway. The channel narrows, and in places is not more than 25yards. The depth is from 12 to 16 feet, and the turns and bends,though not as sharp as on the Bahr El Zeraf, are endless. Thedifference between the Bahr El Zeraf and the Bahr El Ghazal is verystriking. The water of the former during the period of low supplyis considerably below its banks; in the latter it is almost levelwith them. The rise of the former, even in ordinary flood, is notless than 6 to 6½ feet. That of the Bahr El Ghazal, on thecontrary, must be very small. It is difficult to imagine that evenin flood the water can rise more than 3, or at most, 4 feet overits lowest level. Even with such a rise, the area of the countryunder water would be enormous, and the flooding would extend for avery long distance. A few miles further up the depth of waterincreases to 19 feet, and in places to 25 feet. For the first timeforest appears in the distance on the left, but several thousandyards away from the river. The right bank is now covered with lowbush and scrub beyond the flooded line. The country bordering theBahr El Ghazal does not have the appearance of being under waterfor any length of time, even in flood. In this respect, again, itdiffers from that traversed by the Bahr El Zeraf. It must, however,be saturated and resemble a sponge in the rainy season. Therecannot be more than a very shallow film of water over these plains,or the bush and scrub would not flourish as it does; neither wouldant-hills be found in such quantities. The general slope of thecountry is so low that the water must drain off extremelyslowly. |
| Deleb palm | 3 | 21 | |
| Mayyeh Nur | 10 | 31 | At mile 31 the widthis 60 yards, and the reed-belt gets narrower; a very large“mayyeh,” or khor, comes in on the left bank here. This is known asthe Mayyeh Nur, or the Mayyeh Mahmud Effendi. Its width near thejunction is from 150 to 200 yards, and its general directionappears to be west. It is very shallow. This mayyeh is said toreceive the waters of the Keilak River (Mayyeh b’ta Komandari (?)),a stream about which little is known, but which is supposed to risein the hills of Dar Nuba. There is a wooding-station on right bankopposite the Nur. Up-stream of this junction the Bahr El Ghazaltakes a more southerly direction. The two streams run for somemiles parallel to one another, from 600 to 700 yards apart. Thecountry between the two is, perhaps, 2 feet over the water. At mile35, the first papyrus seen since leaving the White Nile is metwith. From this point on, for many miles, a band of this reedfringes both edges of the water. It is never so high as on the BahrEl Jebel, nor does it grow here in such dense luxuriance as on thatstream. The water surface is very narrow, often not more than 20yards, but the depth is considerable, averaging from 15 to 19 feet.The reed-birds here are an extraordinary sight. They areto be seen inmyriads and resemble a flight of locusts. The Serût fly is very badon the Bahr El Ghazal. The ant-hills certainly form a distinctivefeature of the Ghazal scenery. Nowhere else are they so large or sonumerous. They are generally from 20 to 50 yards apart. At mile 49good halting or camping ground, fairly dry; bushes and trees right.Large clump of big trees ½ mile away south. This clump is close tothe stream running into Mayyeh Deleb. From here on, channel verynarrow; papyrus both sides; liable to be blocked with sudd at anytime; large islands of sudd are met, often taking up whole width ofstream up to the junction with the Bahr El Arab, where river ismuch wider again. Mayyeh right: river bends sharply, channel onlywidth of steamer, 17 feet; current very fast; numbers of owls andBalæniceps Rex seen about, also hippopotami; some wood left, 500yards away. Large trees left, close to water, good for fuel;village on horizon right, and two Dom palms; channel opens up. Atmile 53 wooding-station left. The papyrus belt gets wider as theriver is ascended, and at 57 miles the forest on the left bankcomes down close to the water’s edge and the river skirts it forsome 2 miles. The trees are large, but the belt is only a fewhundred yards wide. |
| Papyrus | 4 | 35 | |
| Camping ground | 14 | 49 | |
| Wood-station | 4 | 53 | |
| Large tree | 8 | 61 | The scenery here isbeautiful, as the ground is high and glades of fine trees arescattered about the grassy plain. Many elephants are to be seen. Onthe right bank is a wide marsh through which the river channel hasevidently wandered at times. This is the beginning of the reach inwhich the Bahr El Ghazal is occasionally closed by sudd. At 61miles, in 1880, Marno found his first block here, and in November,1898, and April, 1899, it was blocked. Large solitary tree rightbank. The channel is very narrow, deep, and winding. At present itruns under the high bank, but it is clear that it could easily beblocked at one of the many bends, and in such a case it woulddoubtless form a series of lagoons and mayyehs in the adjacentpapyrus marsh. After leaving the left bank forest for a time theriver at mile 62 again returns to it. The depth of the channelsuddenly decreases to 5 feet, but soon deepens again to 10 and 13feet. This shoal is doubtless caused by decomposed sudd which hassunk to the bottom. Such a bar is one of the frequent causes of ablock. The sudd raises the bed level, and other masses floatingdown ground upon the obstruction and the channel is speedilyclosed. The Bahr El Ghazal has evidently changed its course herevery recently. It is now much closer to the left bank than it wasin 1899. The change has probably been caused by a block of sudd. Itwas near here, i.e., at mile 63, that Gessi Pasha had sucha disastrous experience in January, 1880. His steamers, ondescending this river, were imprisoned in the sudd for some 6weeks, and he lost over 100 men. Had it not been for the opportunearrival of Marno in the “Bordein” none of the party could haveescaped. They were on the verge of starvation and it was impossibleto obtain fuel for the steamers, being cut off from the shore by animpassable swamp. These 6 or 7 miles of the Bahr El Ghazal mustalways be more or less dangerous, as regards possible closure bysudd, at certain seasons of the year. In 1900 and 1901 the channelwas open, but in the spring of 1899 it was closed not far up-streamof this point. The channel is extremely contracted, having a widthof only 12 yards and a depth of 13 feet. The course is so tortuousthat it is difficult to follow all the turns. The whole of thisarea must, in the rainy seasons, be a reedy lake. At mile 64 theriver emerges from this dreadful marsh and the width increases to30 yards. The banks average 2½ feet above water level. The countryon either side is generally higher. On the right, bush is dottedabout, and the ant-hills reappear to the left in a large grassyplain. At mile 65 the river widens into a lagoon, some 400 yardsbroad, and a mile in length. At the up-stream end of this lagoon alarge mayyeh is said by the Arabs to form the outlet of the JauRiver, which is another of the tributary streams that feed the BahrEl Ghazal from the south. This channel, which is known as theMayyeh Ahmed Arabi, runs more or less parallel to the Bahr ElGhazal for some 40 miles, taking off it at Lake Ambadi, or 88 milesfrom the point where the Ghazal and the Deleb join. It is often ata considerable distance from the main stream, but glimpses are tobe seen of it at times. A fine tamarind-tree close to the edge ofthe mayyeh assists recognition of this spot. In 1899 the Bahr ElGhazal was blocked by sudd near this junction. The right bankcontinues to be fairly high, but the left is low and must beflooded for a long distance. The stream is now more rapid. The airin the mornings here is cool and damp, but a strong marshy smellprevails. At mile 74 wood-station left bank. Elephants, and theEuphorbia first, appear. This shrub is fairly plentiful from thispoint up-stream. For several miles there is little change in theconditions, but at mile 79 trees are visible on the right bank,about 1,500 yards from the river. The intermediate country isflooded. A few Dinka are occasionally met with, but no villages.The absence of human habitations on this river is very striking.Since the Nuer villages were left behind at mile 43, not a sign oflife has been visible. A small but deep khor joins the river on theleft bank here. |
| Gessi’s place | 2 | 63 | |
| Jau River or Mayyeh Ahmed Arabi | 3 | 66 | |
| Wood-station | 8 | 74 | |
| 8 | 82 | ||
| False Bahr El Arab | 8 | 90 | From here for the next 20 miles good woodleft. At mile 90 a large and important khor comes in, also on theleft bank. This channel, which was asserted by the boatmen to bethe Bahr El Arab, and which was ascended under this supposition,flows from a north-westerly direction and evidently brings waterfrom a long distance. Later experience has proved that the Bahr ElArab is several miles further up-stream, but this khor must,nevertheless, bring down a large volume of water during the flood.It is quite possible that it forms a second mouth of the Bahr ElArab. It joins the Bahr El Ghazal through two small lakes orlagoons, the largest being about 1,000 yards long by 800 yardswide, with an island in the centre. These lakes are swarming withhippopotami. The width of this khor is much greater that than thatof the Ghazal, being from 100 to 120 yards. It has a perceptiblethough feeble current even in April, but its depth is shallow,averaging from 4 to 5 feet. It was ascended for some 8 miles abovethe junction, when shoal-water prevented further progress. Itsgeneral direction is north-west, but at the furthest point reachedit turns sharply to the north, and its course can be traced for along distance, winding through the country. Even here its width is100 yards, with wide-stretching mud-flats on either side. It runsbetween flat plains covered with low grass and averaging 2½ feetover the water at the river’s edge. It differs remarkably from theGhazal in its characteristics, particularly in the absence of thereed fringe which distinguishes the main river. Its rise must besmall, as the banks show no trace of flooding. |
| Lau | 6 | 96 | From 5 miles above the junction asuccession of Dinka villages line both banks. Some of these arelarge and appear to be thickly peopled. The principal village iscalled Lau. This consists of a large collection of scattered huts,grouped together, and covering a large area. It would beinteresting to explore this khor during high water and ascertainwhether it really is one of the outlets of the Arab River. |
| To return to the Bahr El Ghazal. From thepoint where this khor joins it, the general course is due west andfairly straight with occasional long curves. It is bordered by anarrow strip of papyrus on either bank, and traverses a country offlat grassy plains. This river is placid and sluggish throughoutits entire length, and can never approach anything like a torrent,even when in flood. It meanders along, slowly and gradually suckingaway the moisture of the vast, water-logged flats through which itpasses. Its width averages from 60 to 70 yards, and its mean depthis 10 feet. | |||
| Forest | 4 | 100 | At mile 100 trees andbush are found on both sides and the banks are clear of reeds andcontinue until mile 103, where the Bahr El Arab joins the Ghazal.This forest is known as the “Ghaba b’ta el Arab,” and is one of thefew wooding-stations to be found on the river. The trees upon bothbanks are different from those found elsewhere. There are a fewmimosas, but the bulk are very thorny trees with bright greenleaves. The belt of wood is about half a mile in width, back fromthe river. Behind it are open spaces of grass, through which broadand shallow lagoons wind. In this plain are many large clumps oftrees. Except in the depressions, the country here is certainly notflooded, even in the rainy season. The marks on the banks show thatthe maximum rise of the river is not more than 3 feet. The Bahr ElArab is a broad well-defined channel, from 40 to 100 yards inwidth, and confined between well-marked, but swampy, banks. Itsdirection, at the junction, is due north, but about 3 miles furtherup it turns more to the west and runs apparently through forest.Next to nothing is known of this river. Felkin crossed it inDecember, 1879, and found it, 300 miles from its mouth, 120 yardswide, with banks 15 feet above low water. He noted that in therainy season it flooded the surrounding country. It is impossibleto investigate this river, as, at some 1,300 yards above thejunction, it is closed by sudd and reeds. It has no current at themouth, and its depth is from 10 to 11 feet at low water. The waterof the Bahr El Arab is singularly clear and free from sediment.Reports received in the spring of 1901 show that this river isstill blocked by sudd. Immediately up-stream of the Bahr El Arabjunction the Lake Kit, or Ambadi, begins. The Bahr El Ghazaltraverses this lake, but from this point its nomenclature changes,and the river is known as the “Kit,” or “Keit,” by the natives, andas such is entered on many maps. At mile 105, Lake Ambadi isdivided into two parts by a large grassy island, about a mile inlength, the right channel being 400 yards, and the left 150 yardswide. Half-way up the right channel, the large Mayyeh Ahmed Arabi,previously alluded to, rejoins the Bahr El Ghazal. It has a widthof 500 to 600 yards here. The swamps surrounding this lake are ofconsiderable breadth, especially on the left side. They are verylow and reedy, and a very small rise in the water levels mustincrease the flooded area enormously. It is impossible to calculatethe width of the swamps on the left bank. They appear to extend formany miles from the water’s edge. Lake Ambadi has an average depthof 10 feet, in the deepest parts of the channel, but shoals rapidlyon either side. It is evidently the great reservoir of theBahr El Ghazal,receiving the waters of the swamps and the southern rivers, andslowly discharging them by means of the narrow but deep channel ofthe Ghazal itself. At low water it has a length of about 10 milesby an average breadth of 1 mile; in flood-time the area must bevery much greater. It is a great nursery for certain of the suddgrasses, but chiefly those of the “swimming” variety. TheAzolla, Utricularia, Aldrovandia,Otellia, and many other kinds are found upon its waters. ThePistia is conspicuous by its absence. Among the reeds in theswamps a certain amount of Vossia procera and Saccharumspontaneum is met with, but not in such proportion as on theBahr El Jebel. The papyrus does not exist on this lake, nor doesthe ambach. Except between miles 35 and 82, the former is not foundat all on the Bahr El Ghazal, and it only grows in real luxuriancebetween miles 65 and 77. After Lake No is passed, ambach is notfound in the Bahr El Ghazal. The absence of papyrus and “um sûf” isprobably the reason why the sudd in this river is so much lesstenacious and is so much lighter in consistency than than that ofthe Bahr El Jebel. [Col. Peake, however, speaks of the sudd here asbeing of a “very tough and felt-like consistency.”] Lake Ambadi isthe home of large numbers of the rare Balæniceps Rex. Theevaporation upon the lake must be very great during the hottestmonths. With two large and shallow sheets of water like LakesAmbadi and No, the amount of water discharged by the Bahr El Ghazalmust be largely reduced before it reaches the White Nile. |
| Bahr El Arab | 3 | 103 | |
| Lake Ambadi | 1 | 104 | |
| Kit River | 10 | 114 | At mile 114 the lakestops and the river recommences. This is the Kit, properly socalled. Its width here is from 100 to 120 yards and its depth 10 to11 feet. The current is so feeble as to be almost imperceptible.The Bahr El Homr comes in near this point. On the 1st October,1900, Captain Sanders found the Bahr El Homr navigable for 5 miles;after which it was blocked by sudd. Its width is 80 yards anddepth, 9 feet; direction N.N.W. Col. Peake places its junction 9miles further down-stream. It appears to have no discharge in Marchand April, and the water shoals so that it is impossible to exploreit. For the next 3 miles the Kit has a mean width of 180 yards. Thewater surface suddenly narrows to a width of 20 yards, theremainder of the channel being filled by sudd. In this block areseveral reedy islands. The country is now a dead flat in everydirection. Even on these African rivers it is rare to see anexpanse giving a greater impression of flatness than does this. Onall sides marshes extend, apparently to the horizon. It is quiteimpossible to arrive at an idea of their area. In these marshes aremany large lagoons. A little further up-stream, the channel widensagain from 35 to 40 yards, with a depth varying from 12 to 15 feet.Occasionally it shoals to 6 feet, or less, probably owing to sunkensudd upon the bed. Navigation at all seasons must be verydifficult, as the river winds and twists through the marshes. Thereare no tall reeds here; nothing but floating plants, and the wateris choked with masses of decayed weed. It is a hopeless morass.During stormy weather, this place is one of those where blocks areoften formed. There are no signs of life anywhere, with theexception of the Balæniceps Rex, which are numerous. These horriblemarshes continue for another 6 or 8 miles. Sudd islands separatethe channel, in places, and the width varies greatly. At one pointof this reach, viz., at mile 120, the main channel of the Kit wasquite closed in March, 1900. The entire river was forced through asmall opening, 10 or 12 yards wide, through which a strong streamwas rushing, and in one place it was actually barred for 50 yards.The total length of the block was about 500 yards. A moreloathsome-looking swamp it is difficult to imagine. The sudd inthis river is very different from that of the Bahr El Jebel. It isimpossible to walk on its surface, which resembles slime ratherthan sudd, but which is bound into a mass by vegetable matter. Thechief ingredients appear to be the long trailing, swimming plants,described as found on Lake Ambadi. It is not difficult to force away through it, but the stuff, when removed, does not float as doesthat on the Jebel, but sinks and decays. Three miles on, the twogroups of trees called Matruk-el-Wabur (“the landing-place ofsteamers,” vide Junker) are passed on the left, about 2miles from the main stream. A channel, at present blocked by sudd,leads to the landing-place. Matruk-el-Wabur is an island of dryland in a sea of swamp. When Col. Peake visited it in 1898 theremains of the former French occupation were visible. The Egyptianflag was hoisted here on the 28th September, 1898. Up-stream ofthis point, for another 5 miles, the Kit winds about; the width ofthe channel increases, averaging from 180 to 200 yards; its surfaceis covered by myriads of water fowl, the whistling duck beingespecially numerous; a few Dinka are to be seen, who have come downto the river for the purpose of fishing and hunting thehippopotamus. At mile 128 the channel bifurcates. The Kit itselfruns due south, in the direction of Meshra-el-Rek. The other branchhas a westerly direction, and receives the water of the Jur River,which, again, forms the outlet for the Sueh and Wau Rivers. Thelatitude of this junction, as observed in April, 1900,was 8° 44′ 50″north. The water at the time was so shallow that it was impossiblefor the steamer to ascend the channel, the width of which was from600 to 700 yards, with a depth of 3 feet. The water coming downthis stream was of a dark amber colour, and was evidently thedrainage of the marshes. A slight current was visible. The generaldirection of the Kit is south or south-west. Captain Sanders, whovisited this place in September, 1900, found the Kit completelyblocked by sudd: but Lieutenant Fell, R.N., ascended it in Novemberof the same year, and reports that the water near the Meshra was“foul, stagnant, and very shallow.” In March, 1900, the sudd wasvery light, mostly floating, and easily removed. Above thisjunction, the expanse of water into which the Jur discharges itselfhas a width of 400 yards, a depth of 10 feet, and a fair velocity,even in the month of March. The marshes here are bewildering intheir extent. |
| Matruk-el-Wabur | 9 | 123 | |
| Mouth of Jur River | 5 | 128 | |
| Navigability | — | — | After 3 years’ experience, it is found tobe impossible for a steamer to reach the mouth of the Jur River,and, therefore, of course, Meshra-el-Rek, from the middle of Apriltill the middle of July. In May a steamer cannot get within 15, andin June within 35, miles of the Jur mouth. Even when free of sudd,the Jur is unnavigable, owing to its shallowness, from the firstweek of December to the end of July. After strenuous exertionsduring 2 years on the part of Lieutenant Fell and others, the Jurhas has now been cleared of sudd and a channel made for steamers upto Wau, a distance of 160 miles. This enables stores, &c., toreach headquarters by water during 4 months of the year (August toNovember, inclusive). The sudd is, however, quick-growing and growsfrom the bottom. Sudd-cutting parties have, therefore, to beannually employed during the low river time to clear a channel forthe flood-time. The average difference between high and low Jur isas much as 15 feet; in flood-time the current is swift and theriver deep, whilst the reed beds on either side make towingimpossible. Luckily a north wind helps boats along up-stream. |
| Meshra El Rek | 25 | 153 | (Junker made the total distance by riverfrom Lake No to here, after 1,781 angular measurements, to be about135 miles; but it is difficult to make out his exact point ofstarting.) |
| Meshra-el-Rek lies on a small island in abackwater—the river itself apparently starting in marsh land, andnot yet having been defined. Island about a mile long and variesfrom 200 to 400 yards in breadth. On either side of the rivermarshes extend for 2 or 3 miles. Mosquitoes swarm, and, owing tothe stagnant condition of the river, the water supply is veryindifferent during the dry season. No natives live within about 7or 8 miles. The station consists of straw tukls—the hospitalstanding on the one bit of high ground. Great difficulty inbuilding huts, as there is no wood suitable within several miles;on the whole a most unhealthy place. High ground lies quite 5 milesbeyond the marsh. The French had a fort near our present post in aneven worse position. | |||
THE BAHR EL GHAZAL.
THE BAHR EL GHAZAL—MOUTH OF RIVER ROHL.
[107]Natives of the district deny that it was ever visited by Belgians from the Congo Free State between these years, or in 1894, as has been stated.
[108]Rainfall at Wau (1904) 25 to 30 inches.
[109]Taken from a report by Mr. A. F. Broun, Director of Forests to the Sudan Government.