Page:The empire and the century.djvu/916

 Kikuyu and emerges on the sides of a wild, desolate, wind-swept valley, bounded by strange volcanic mountains. This is the Rift. The first few miles of it, though impressive, are somewhat arid, and the good grazing-ground does not begin until the neighbourhood of Lake Naivasha, which is followed by Lakes Elmenteita and Nakuru. Here the quantity of stock attests the excellence of the pasture, and one may sometimes see the curious spectacle of gazelles which have strayed into the flocks grazing unconcernedly among the sheep and the native herdsmen. The grazing of the Rift Valley is decidedly good, but the idea prevalent among many Europeans in East Africa that it is better than in other parts may be erroneous, and it is probable that the pasturage on the higher levels of the Mau escarpment is really superior, though the land has not been crazed down by native flocks, as, owing to tribal quarrels and the coldness of the climate, the natives do not much frequent the upper regions.

The Mau escarpment bounds the railway on the west, and its level, excluding peaks, is often as much as 9,000 feet. The railway, which naturally follows the lowest and easiest route, attains an elevation of about 8,000 feet. The train reaches the Mau summit in the early morning; and if the traveller has been incredulous of the coolness of equatorial regions, and not provided himself with several blankets, he will be convinced of the reality of the cold, and pass a most uncomfortable night. By a curious coincidence the coldest part of the journey is also that nearest to the equator, which is only about ten miles north of the railway. The plateaux of the Mau extend to a considerable distance north and south of the railway. They are not well known, owing to their being almost entirely uninhabited, but the character of the whole district appears to be the same, and its quality and suitability for European residence has been tested at several points. What is said of it applies equally well to the Settima Range and the plateaux on the eastern side of the Rift Valley, con-