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[Page 49]
a cup somewhat larger than an ordinary thimble. Two pretty girls (one very much so) served out the goods and gave nice smiles gratis. There was a rather striking looking and dashing young Col Sergt there who imbibed not wisely but too well. He seized a chair and offered it his arm. Apparently the chair refused for the he expostulated, shrugged his shoulders, protested & explained in dumb show. The obdurate article was apparently at last won over and graciously permitted itself to be waltzed and ragtimed across the room. He also danced with the two pretty girls and drew much applause. Apparently he was in favour for the prettiest girl obstinately refused to be partner with a less lucky aspirant. At 11.30 the Red Caps came in and kicked us all out. Conveyances for hire here are [indecipherable]. They are usually rubber tyred. It is 7 miles out to the camp and it cost only 4 shillings to take 5 of us out from Cairo. Cairo is licentious in the extreme. In fact, this, which
is usually regarded by the European as an aspect of immorality forms part of the religion here. The other Sunday Vic Brown and I took a walk over to the plantation lying along the river and north of the camp. None of the natives over there can speak English. There are a number of ducks in marshy places there. Cotton and cereals are grown. There was no roads as we understand it but just a defined track through the sand. Some of the natives regarded us pleasantly enough but others looked at us in a surly questioning manner. The houses (isolated ones) were built of stone cemented in mosaic fashion. They were flat roofed and more and of the usual rather monotonous looking type. The land is very carefully irrigated and tended. In places the soil is raised a few inches so as to enclose squares with nets something over a yard in length. At one place there were sheep goats and the hump-backed buffalo. These cattle have a very small [indecipherable]. The beasts of burden are the donkeys and cattle. Perhaps I might have also included some of the women in the last category as I observed some