CHAPTER XI.

ICE-MAKING IN AFRICA—A HUNTERS' LUNCHEON—AFTER
GEMSBOK AGAIN.

The next morning Jack's stroke of paralysis in the way of a feast developed itself. He fished out from one of the wagons a box containing a small machine for making ice. The machine was small, and also its capacity: it could make two pounds of ice in three hours, and that was the utmost of which it was capable. I forget the name of the machine, but it was of French manufacture, and Jack said in case it got out of repair it was necessary to send the thing to Paris. It worked in an odd sort of way, as the ice was obtained by means of the condensation of ammonia-gas into the fluid form, and the gas was formed by building a fire under a retort. It struck me as very funny that heat was required for making ice, but so it was.

"I bought this thing in Paris," said Jack, "and brought it along, thinking it might be useful. Have thought of it several times since we came up-country, but didn't want the bother of taking it out and setting it up. But it's all right now, and I don't mind the trouble, when we're going to give a reception to ladies."

Jack put the machine in operation in the neighborhood of the cook's quarters, and detailed one of the most intelligent of the men to watch it. In the meantime Harry had taken his fowling-piece and gone out to shoot some quail, which were abundant in the open region a mile or so to the south of the camp. He came back in little more than an hour with a fine string of them, and said he could have bagged enough for a London evening party had there been any occasion to do so. He also shot a bustard, and said it would make a first-rate substitute for turkey.

Our cook was a native of the soil and had not been to Paris for his training in the culinary art. His science was limited to plain stews and broils; but as to anything else he was a failure. We tried him two or three times on making bread, but the article he produced was of a quality that would have been refused by a starving beggar. We set him to work making a stew of the best parts of the young buffalo, and also intrusted him with the broiling of some gemsbok-steaks. The rest of the cooking was supervised by ourselves, and we managed to get along very well, considering our inexperience. We had a very fair quality of bread, which was prepared by Harry overnight and baked in a Dutch oven; and we also drew upon the resources of the wagon for various things. For soup we strained off the thin part of the buffalo-stew, rejecting all the rest. It was not lost, however, as the Kafirs made short work of what was left.

Altogether the menu for our luncheon was as follows:

Buffalo-soup
Gemsbok-steak
Boiled eland's tongue
Cutlets of roast turkey (bustard)
Broiled quail
Salad of South Africa
Bread
Claret
Iced champagne
Tea and coffee
Crackers and cheese

"That wouldn't be a bad lay-out for New York or London, would it?" said Harry, as we went over the list.

"Not by any means," I answered. "I don't believe we'll get through with it and eat heartily of every dish."

"No more do I," said Jack; "and I think we will astonish our visitors by showing what three bachelors can do when left to their own resources."

Everything was ready about noon—the time when our visitors were expected. All the articles were under the supervision of the cook, and he was threatened with instant death in case anything was missing.

While we were waiting for our guests Jack suggested that we might possibly think up something else to add to the feast, but Harry and I deterred him from so doing. He thought he might be able to bring something more out of the recesses of the wagon, but we voted that it would be useless to do so.

We were just a little pushed on the score of tableware, as our canteen was made up for four persons; but by making some of the plates and dishes do double duty, and calling into use some tin cups and tin plates, we managed to get along.

About half an hour past the meridian one of our Kafirs reported people approaching from the westward, and shortly thereafter our visitors arrived. The fair ones were accompanied by their manager and after-rider, and all were on horseback. We met them at the front of the kraal; I assisted Mrs. Roberts to dismount, while Jack showed the same civility to Miss Boland. The manager and after-rider disappeared in the direction of the kraal, where our manager took charge of them; and after presenting my two friends to the ladies I escorted them to the tent. We had been not a little curious as to the costume they would wear on their visit, but all our doubts were set at rest when they came in sight, as they were habited precisely like English or American equestriennes, and their riding-habits had a decidedly fresh and unused look; but more about that by and by.

They departed a little, though, from the fashion of civilized life in avoiding the chimney-pot hat which custom ordains for the woman on horseback. On their heads they wore the sola topee, or sun-hat, which is familiar to everybody in Africa and Asia, and pretty well known at present throughout Europe and the United States. And I may add that this head-gear is a pleasing addition to a woman's riding-dress and ought to be more generally used than it is.

We had a little conversation in the tent, and then I suggested to Jack and Harry that our duties as assistant cooks required our presence in the kitchen. If the ladies would excuse us we would go and see that the ice-cream was properly on the fire and the Scotch whisky browned after the style of the old country. The ladies excused us graciously, and we left them to themselves in the tent, so that they might remove their hats and repair any little damages to hair or face which the ride might have caused. But there was more earnestness than jest in my suggestion, as we all had something to attend to in the way of preparing the feast.

We returned in a little while, and conversation was resumed on general topics. The ladies had much to say about the neatness of our camp and the stanch manner in which our kraal was constructed. I told them of our lion adventure, and added that I thought their kraal was quite as well built as ours.

"As to the neatness of things as you see them," said Jack, with the most outspoken frankness, "it is very largely due to your visit. Man, when left to himself, isn't a very orderly being, and we three fellows haven't wasted much time in making things shipshape about our camp. Each of us has his corner in the tent and leaves his things pretty much as he likes. We have a rule that no one is to disturb the property of anybody else, and we abide by it strictly. So, although everything may appear in disorder, we can each of us lay hands on everything of our own that we want, because we know exactly where it is."

Jack paused, and Harry took up the line of talk by suggesting that we had been straightening up a good deal since I returned with the announcement that the ladies were coming to visit us. "We don't think it at all right to allow you to take things as they were, but rather as you find them now. At the same time, we don't believe it proper to live under any false pretenses."

"I think I ought to blush for my conduct in this matter," I said, as Harry paused.

"How so?" queried Mrs. Roberts.

"Why, because I called at your camp without warning, while we have had two days' notice."

"Oh, but don't you remember," the lady replied, "I kept you waiting outside for at least a quarter of an hour? You can't imagine what prodigies of setting things to rights we did in those fifteen minutes."

"Well, we didn't accomplish ours in any fifteen minutes, I assure you," I answered; "to be frank about it, we were at work all yesterday forenoon."

"We appreciate the compliment, I am sure; do we not, Miss Boland?" was the reply.

"Certainly we do," said the young lady; "and I almost feel conscience-stricken for having put you to so much trouble."

"The trouble has been a great pleasure," Jack responded; "it has been more than a pleasure—it has called us back to civilization, which we were rapidly forgetting, and so becoming like the barbarians around us. No visit of men could have raised in us the energy to do what we have done—nothing short of a visit of fair women. I have often thought that if Adam had been left in Eden without the presence of Eve he would have become as great a barbarian as a South African hunter, and the only security for the animals which abounded there was that he didn't have any firearms."

"Oh, but he could have dug a pitfall for them, just as the natives do here," said Miss Boland; "or perhaps he would have driven them into a kraal and slaughtered them by wholesale."

The conversation went on in this way for a little while, and then, as I saw our three personal attendants standing near the table, I rose and asked the ladies to walk into the dining-hall, offering my arm to Mrs. Roberts and requesting Mr. Delafield to escort Miss Boland. I remark by the way that the question of the division of two ladies among three men had previously been decided by a "toss-up," Harry being left out in the cold by this appeal to Fortune. I had Mrs. Roberts at my right; Jack came next; next was Miss Boland; and between Miss Boland and myself Harry was placed. This was about the best arrangement we could make. Harry had suggested that another woman might be obtained, so as to make the party an evenly-balanced one, by washing and dressing one of the Kafir women. Jack inquired whether she would be dressed with butter or olive-oil, and then the subject was dropped.

To tell the whole story of the visit would be tedious, and I forbear. Considering that we were in South Africa, we had an excellent luncheon; while the cooking was not up to the Delmonico standard, the food was abundant and by no means poor in quality. Our visitors praised it rapturously, and declared they had not sat down to as fine a table since they started from Walvisch Bay. Jack's salad was a success of the highest order, and received the sincere praise of everybody.

When the quail were brought Jack begged to be excused for a few moments while he went to the kitchen. He came back with five glasses, filled to the top with ice, on a battered tray which he carried in one hand, while in the other he held a bottle of champagne. Placing the tray on the table, he cut the string and allowed the cork to escape from its confinement with its well-accustomed sound. Then he filled the glasses with champagne and passed them around to our surprised visitors and to ourselves.

I say "surprised"—they were more than surprised; they were paralyzed, as Jack predicted they would be. They sat in speechless astonishment looking at the bubbles rising around the lumps of ice, and I think both of them brought their hands to their foreheads to make sure whether they were awake or dreaming.

"Ice in the wilds of South Africa!" exclaimed Mrs. Roberts. "Who ever heard or dreamed of such a thing!"

"Yes, indeed," said Miss Boland, "this is the greatest surprise since we started from Walvisch Bay. I felt sure we would be received in princely style, but this is more than princely—it is royal; it is imperial!"

"Ladies, we drink to your very good health," said Jack, with all the grace of a master of ceremonies at a royal court. Bear in mind that he was clad in check shirt and trousers and a very shabby moleskin jacket, which was about the same as the dress of Harry and myself.

All the healths were drunk, and then we had more conversation. The coffee was brought, and Mrs. Roberts suggested that if we wished to smoke we were at liberty to do so, as the dining-room was well ventilated and smoke would be no inconvenience to them.

We thanked her and said that we did not care to smoke at that time, the usual period for our pipes being at the end of the day. After a while we adjourned from table, took a stroll outside the kraal, and managed to get fairly well acquainted all around. The ladies told us who they were, and gave us a sufficient amount of information about their families.

The afternoon wore on, and in due time Mrs. Roberts said they had better be returning to their camp. Their horses were ordered up; but before mounting they gave us a cordial invitation to visit them at home, and the day was named for our doing so. Then we helped them into their saddles—their manager and after-rider were already mounted—and away the quartet cantered in the direction of the sun, which was much more than half-way from the zenith to the horizon.

After our visitors had disappeared we discussed them briefly, and our talk was brought suddenly to an end by the arrival of one of our Kafirs, who reported a herd of gemsbok not more than a mile away to the southward. We agreed that it would be a good settler for our luncheon to take a run in their direction, and in a few minutes we were mounted on our horses and off in pursuit of the game.

We had a good run, and a successful one too, as each of the party brought down an animal without much delay. We managed to get on three sides of the herd, and in this way confused them, thus rendering our success comparatively easy. We got back to camp a little after sunset, and when we sat down to supper Jack remarked that he had not much appetite.

"Well, that's about the way with me," said Harry; "that luncheon was enough to spoil anybody's appetite for the rest of the day."

I had a similar confession to make, and we did not linger long over our suppers; but what we did enjoy was our smoke afterward, and we made amends for our deprivation during the day.

"Charming young woman, that Miss Boland," said Jack, as he lit his pipe with a coal from the fire.

CHAPTER XII.

ANOTHER ELEPHANT—A MISFORTUNE—HARRY'S LUCK.

"Yes, that she is," said Harry; "girl of excellent manners, and the pink of propriety."

Of course I echoed their opinion, and added to it a similar expression in favor of Mrs. Roberts, to which both my friends assented.

"We've put them on their mettle," said Jack, "and when we go to take their lunch they'll be sure to startle us in some way."

"Yes, that they will," said Harry. "I suspected as much when they named the date for our visit. They wouldn't have put the time off so far if it had not been for their desire to make elaborate preparations."

"We'll see what we shall see," I remarked; and then the conversation changed to our plans for the next day.

"I think the elephants will suffer to-morrow," said Harry—"that is, if we can find any."

"Yes," I answered, "we ought to be in the mood for an elephant-hunt, and if we can hear of any elephants about we'll go for them."

While we were at breakfast the next morning Mirogo came and announced some elephants off to the eastward, where the forest skirted a swamp extending to the river. He said they had been seen at the edge of the forest about daylight; there were a dozen or more of them, and some were large tuskers.

Breakfast was completed very quickly, and we were off in the direction of the elephants. We followed the same tactics as in some of the hunts already described, Harry and Jack taking opposite sides of the forest and I going among the trees to stir up the game.

Luck was on my side most emphatically, as I got a shot at a big tusker before I had been fifteen minutes away from my friends. I did not bring him down with my first bullet; he turned and charged me, and I had a lively race among the trees to escape him. His charge proved his ruin, as I dodged between two trees that were too near each other to enable him to get through; he was going at such a rapid rate that he fairly wedged himself between them. Seeing his predicament, I slipped around to one side and gave him a bullet at not more than five paces distance. That bullet was his death. He settled back on his haunches and fell prostrate on the ground. I fired another bullet into his head to make sure of him, but am satisfied that it was a waste of ammunition.

I stood motionless for several minutes, surveying my prize; and he was a prize, and no mistake! His tusks measured four feet nine and a half inches in length, each of them; and I have them now above my desk as I write. They have been greatly admired, and a high price has been offered for them, but I hope I may never be so hard up as to be compelled to sell these trophies of my hunting-experience.

I marked the spot, or rather took note of the position of certain tall trees near where the carcass of the elephant lay, and then started off in pursuit of the others. My tracker and gun-bearer had disappeared; exactly how far they ran I could not tell, but my first work was to summon them, which I did by blowing a whistle.

I whistled and waited; whistled and waited again and again before I was answered. First came the tracker and then the gun-bearer. I abused them roundly for having run away, though I really felt that their departure was not altogether unjustifiable under the circumstances. The elephant would have made no difference between white man and black, and he was not expected to draw a line between the man who carried the gun and the one who fired it. When I had talked myself out on that subject I asked Mirogo what had become of the other elephants.

"I think they've gone into the swamp, sir," was his reply; "I haven't heard a shot from the other gentlemen."

"Well, then, the thing for us to do is to go into the swamp and find them," I remarked. "Which way does it bear?"

Mirogo indicated the direction of the swamp and then led the way to it.

The forest was bad enough to walk in, but the swamp was worse; there were about the same vines and creepers in the swamp as in the forest, and then there was the further disadvantage that it was all cut up into little hillocks or islands, with mud-holes separating the islands from one another. The islands were of various sizes, from that of the top of a barrel up to the size of a respectable parlor; and the mud-holes between the islands were anywhere from two feet to a dozen wide. In going through these mud-holes we sank half-way to our knees—that is, if we went quickly; if we proceeded slowly we sank at least to our knees, if not deeper. Then, to add to the inconvenience, there were no trees in the swamp; at least, none large enough to afford shelter against an enraged elephant. There were some small trees, perhaps a foot in diameter, which a man could climb; but he needed the agility of a monkey to get away from his pursuer in case he got an elephant after him. I did not like that swamp a bit when we got into it, and if I had been alone I can say confidentially to the reader that I would have sneaked out and gone home. But my friends were waiting for me at the edge of the forest, and this was not a time to hesitate; I had a reputation to sustain.

Mirogo led the way into the swamp, and I followed; and before we had gone half a mile I had made two or three tumbles in the mud and water, and was covered from head to foot with black ooze. We went along as quietly as possible; but with all our care we could not help treading on an occasional stick or making some other disturbance. We could hear the elephants tramping around in the water, and they were evidently a good deal disturbed at the loss of their companion, who had fallen before my rifle. At one time they seemed to be receding from us, and I was about suggesting that we give up the chase and rejoin Jack and Harry on the open ground outside the forest.

Suddenly Mirogo, who was about ten feet in advance of me, turned around, and with finger on his lip made a motion toward the front. I crept along to his side, and when I reached it he whispered that the elephants were there—he had just seen one.

I took my gun from Kalil, and then glanced at the position to see what line of retreat I could take in case of trouble. The prospects were not favorable, and I know I felt a sinking sensation clear down into my boots, which were filled with water; but the sportsman's fire was within me, and I crept on.

Passing around a clump of bushes through a medium-sized mud-hole, and then around another clump, I came in sight of a fine bull-elephant; not as large as my first one of the morning, but still a very fine one for a hunter's bag. Unfortunately he was standing directly tail on toward me. A shot at the stern of a ship may sometimes do great damage, but not so a shot at the stern of an elephant: there is a great mass of fleshy matter there, and you can fire into it with anything short of a cannon-ball without doing much damage, and, what is more, without impeding the movements of the beast. You will simply enrage him, and that is about all.

To keep out of his sight I had to get down into a mud-hole, or rather I lay with most of my body in the mud and water, and my head and shoulders supported by one of the little islands or tussocks.

For three or four minutes the swishing and cracking of the bushes continued, and I could see the back of the elephant most of the time, but not very distinctly. Then his back disappeared and he seemed to move away, which compelled me to change my position, giving up one mud-hole for another. As I rose to an erect position I stepped on a stick, which gave way with an audible crack. Luckily the elephant at this time was engaged in smashing about among the bushes, and so did not hear me.

I crept cautiously along, and as I did so the elephant moved out from behind a large bush and presented a fine broadside. I took in the shape of his tusks and noted that they were perfect. Then I brought the rifle to my shoulder and fired.

It was a successful shot—at least, successful in one way, though disastrous in another. The elephant came down head foremost; in fact, his head was so very much foremost that it was doubled under him. He was standing just above a little island or tussock, on which lay a fallen log. Both his tusks rested on this log, and his great weight, being concentrated upon his head, broke one of the tusks short off at the lip. I heard the crack and knew that something was wrong.

The other tusk came near breaking, and I have always wondered why it did not give way; instead of doing so it tore open that side of the skull, fairly bursting the thick bone, just as the young shoot of a plant bursts the soil in which it grows. If the two tusks could have burst out in this manner it would have been a saving of time and trouble, as I then could have carried them away with me at once or sent my men to get them.

There are three ways of getting the tusks of an elephant that you have killed. If you must have them at once your only recourse is to chop them out; and chopping the tusks out of an elephant's head is no small matter. If you are encamped in the neighborhood and can wait a week or ten days, you can, at the end of that time, pull the tusks out without much difficulty. As the flesh of the animal decomposes, the tusks become loosened, just as the teeth of a horse or other animal become loose in a week or two after his death. The third way is to have the elephant fall upon the tusks in such a manner as to pry them out of their sockets. The reader will readily perceive that this is entirely a matter of accident, and of rare accident at that. Besides, there is a risk of breaking the tusks, as happened in my case.

Well, my prize lay there. After prodding him two or three times, and having Mirogo pull his tail, to make sure that he was dead, I climbed up on his side and surveyed him. He was a magnificent bull-elephant, and probably not less than one hundred years old.

There is a good deal of dispute among African hunters as to the age of elephants, some contending that they do not live anywhere near as many years as does the Asiatic elephant. There are elephants in India known to be one hundred and fifty years old. I have never been able to see why the African pachyderm should be any less long-lived than his Asiatic brother; the characteristics of the two are so nearly alike that their habits and way of life are pretty much the same, except that the Indian elephant is domesticated and the African one is not, or, at any rate, very rarely. The khedive of Egypt generally has two or three African elephants in his collection at Cairo, and the famous Jumbo—the delight of many thousands of children in Great Britain and the United States—was a native of Africa, and not of Asia. But let us return to our hunting. As soon as I had surveyed my prize and marked his position by the surrounding trees, I sent Mirogo to look for the other elephants, I following him closely. The others had taken alarm and fled. Their spoor showed that they had scattered somewhat, and just as I was considering which spoor was the largest, so that I might follow it, I heard three shots off on the right and then two on the left.

"Not much more chance for me to-day," I said to myself; "Harry and Jack are getting their innings now, and it's time they had them."

I was about saying we might as well give up the chase when Mirogo suggested it. "The elephants have taken the alarm," said Mirogo, "and we can't get near them any more; they're gone out into the forest, and are giving the other gentlemen a chance."

"Very well," I answered, "we'll go where the other gentlemen are, and see how much they have done."

Then I told Mirogo to lead the way to the one that was nearest. He suggested that we go first to Harry, and from Harry's position to Jack's, which would be in the direction of camp.

We retraced our steps out of the swamp into the dry ground of the forest, and then, by means of the sun and my pocket-compass, took a course as nearly as we could make out for the point where Harry was located. Before we got in sight of him we heard considerable clamor, which satisfied us that he had been successful. Such proved to be the case, as he had brought down a good-sized tusker with only three shots. His tracker and gun-bearer were detailing the incidents of the shooting to several of the natives, who had come out from camp and halted at a respectful distance until the affair was over. Several jackals had already appeared on the scene, and a dozen or more vultures were circling through the air, two or three hundred feet above the ground.

It is astonishing how quickly the jackals, vultures, hyenas, wild dogs, and other feeders upon fresh or stale flesh will put in an appearance after an elephant or other large animal has been killed. I have been puzzled many a time to know where they came from; they seem to rise out of the ground, or drop out of the sky, as if by magic. They are useful in their way—very useful—as they perform the work of scavengers without exacting any financial reward. Even the lion does not disdain to perform his share, and when you see him associating with hyenas and jackals you have very little inclination to rank him as the king of beasts and give him all the prerogatives of royalty.

Harry was in great glee over the elephant he had shot, especially as he had had a narrow escape in the performance. He had taken his position behind a tree, close by an elephant-path leading from the open ground into the forest. He heard the elephant crashing along among the trees, and stood ready to give him a shot. Then there was a pause and the most perfect stillness, and the pause was broken by the sound of the elephant moving again, and evidently retreating farther into the wood. Harry was about to leave his position and follow on the animal's spoor, but was restrained by his tracker, who said, "Elephant come back bimeby, little while."

CHAPTER XIII.

HARRY'S SHOT—HIS TRACKER'S PREDICAMENT—AFTER
HIPPOPOTAMI—ELEPHANTS AGAIN.

Harry concluded to wait; and, sure enough, the elephant came back, as the tracker predicted. He paused again at the edge of the forest, and then came out and proceeded at a rapid walk along the path.

Harry raised his rifle and fired at the vulnerable spot, just between the eye and ear. He wounded the elephant, but did not bring him down, and then the animal turned and charged upon him, elevating his trunk and giving a vicious roar as he ran upon his antagonist.

Harry took advantage of the tree in the same way that I had done; and, according to his account, his antics were very much like mine, which the reader already knows about. The tracker climbed into the limbs of a small tree close by, thinking that there would be a place of safety. The elephant saw him ascending the tree, and abandoned the chase for Harry, in the hope of capturing the tracker.

He got under the tracker's tree just as the latter was a foot or so beyond the reaching-point. Had the elephant been five seconds earlier he could have seized the tracker with his trunk and dragged him to the ground. Failing in this, he determined to shake the man down.

Stepping back eight or ten feet, the brute ran at the tree with the force of a battering-ram. The tracker—a lithe and active Kafir—knew that his safety and life depended upon clinging to the tree, and he hung to it, as the sailors say, "enough to squeeze the tar out of the rigging."

Three times the elephant butted at that tree, and while he was doing so Harry was making a diversion on which the infuriated animal had not counted. With his rifle at full cock, and taking advantage of the shelter afforded by a few bushes, Harry crept around until he had the elephant broadside on and not more than twelve yards distant; he gave him a second and a third shot in his most vulnerable points. The animal abandoned his tree-shaking and started again in pursuit of Harry. He took only three or four steps, however, before pausing, trembling, and then falling dead to the ground.

Then we came around to where Jack had been stationed. He had also killed his elephant, but, unfortunately, the animal was a young one. It was a tusker, it is true, but the tusks were small, as was also the elephant.

"As for a story," said Jack, "I'm like the needy knife-grinder: I've none to tell. This little fellow came along, and I shot him; and that's all there is about it."

"Well, if that's all about it," said I, "we'll go back to camp and send the men out to bring in the tusks. It's a good morning's work all around, and we ought to be satisfied with it."

By the time we got back to camp it was past noon, and we were, literally, hungry as hunters. The cook was ready for us with a dinner of gemsbok-steak and stewed rhinoceros. Rhinoceros is not by any means a bad dish, and many is the meal I have made of it. You can have it in a steak, a roast, or a stew. I think it goes best in a stew; but there is a difference of opinion on that point, just as there is in everything else in the cooking line. A young elephant is not at all bad eating, and elephants' feet, no matter whether the animal be young or old, are one of the delicacies of Africa.

To cook an elephant's foot, and do it properly, requires time and attention. First get your foot. Then dig a hole in the ground and build a fire over it; keep this fire going for two or three hours, until you have got the ground hot all around, and the hole is filled with coals and glowing ashes. Then throw your elephant's foot into the hole, covering it over with the hot ashes and embers, and build more fire over it. It will take from one hour to five or six hours to cook the foot, depending upon its size and the extent and heat of the fire. When you think it is done let it stay a little longer—say half an hour—then rake it out of the ashes, and after letting it cool enough so that you can handle it, serve it up. It will be found to be a delicious semi-gelatinous mass, suggesting broiled pigs' feet, but as much better than that commonplace dish as the elephant is nobler and larger than our bristly friend of the pigsty.

While at dinner we discussed various things to do in the afternoon, but found that all were sufficiently weary after the morning's work to be willing to keep quiet the rest of the day. At the same time we wanted to do something, and so it was proposed that we go down to the river—about two miles—and try for a hippopotamus. The hippo is a difficult beast to shoot, as he sticks pretty closely to the water, and it is very unusual to find him on land. The time he spends out of the water is nearly always at night. The natives take advantage of this peculiarity of the beast, and make traps and pitfalls for him; and that reminds me that I came very near getting my death-blow from a hippopotamus-trap, one afternoon, while I was walking along a path near the river-bank. This is the way the thing was rigged:

An iron spear was stuck in the end of a heavy stick of wood; and as if the weight of the stick was not enough, some heavy stones were tied on each side of it, close to the end. This spear was suspended, with the point downward, right above a path which the hippopotamus followed on the way from the river to his feeding-ground. The cord by which the spear was suspended was carried over the limb of a tree and then down to the ground, where it was fastened to a trigger. This trigger was connected with a cord that extended across the path.

Now, a hippopotamus, in coming along the path, does not try to step over the cord, but pushes his clumsy feet against it. In the first place, he is taking his walk at night, and cannot see the cord; and even if he could see it his legs are too short to allow him to step over it. So he just shuffles along, pushes against it, releases the trigger, and if the trap has been properly arranged the spear comes down directly between his shoulders; his spine is pretty certainly cut in two, and if he is not killed outright he is unable to leave the spot. The natives find him in the morning, and despatch him very quickly if any life remains.

I had heard about these traps before I came into the hippopotamus region, but had forgotten all about them, when one day I was walking along a path and came to a cord just such as I have described. It was rather high for me to step over, and the thought occurred to me that somebody must have lost a piece of cord there and I had better pick it up. I was extending my hand to take hold of it when I happened to look upward, and saw, directly above me, the weighted spear, ready to fall the instant the trigger was disturbed! I backed away from the spot very quickly, and took a course around the trap instead of venturing farther along the path.

Harry and Jack were ready for the hippopotamus-hunt before I was, and they started off, I agreeing to follow. They had previously sent away a dozen or more natives—some of them our own men, and others picked up in the vicinity—to prepare the raft necessary for a raid upon the amphibious brutes. It is better to shoot them from a raft of reeds—which can be constructed in a few minutes—than to shoot them from a boat. They can overturn a boat and make it decidedly nasty for the occupants; it is true they can shake up a raft somewhat, but they cannot overturn it or sink it anywhere near as easily as they can a boat.

My friends had been gone ten or fifteen minutes, and I was just getting ready to start, when Mirogo, my elephant-tracker, came rushing in, and said there were elephants back in the forest where we had shot them in the morning.

Here was a temptation that I could not well resist. Elephants are bigger game than hippopotami, and there is a great deal more glory, and also a good deal more risk, in shooting them. I started a man off to tell Harry and Jack to go ahead with their fun and not wait for me, and also to inform them as to the cause of my detention.

Well, we went after the elephants—Mirogo, Kalil, and I. This time I put my large cartridge-belt around my waist—I had worn my small one before—and as we neared the forest I filled it with cartridges from the supply which Kalil carried.

Mirogo had left a native to keep an eye on the movements of the herd, and as we approached the forest the man met us and guided us on our course. The herd was considerably farther to the west than the one of the morning, and as it had not been alarmed in any way it was supposed not to be the one whose numbers we had reduced with our rifles.

The locality which the new herd had sought was not at all to my liking, as the ground at the edge of the forest was covered with wait-a-bit thorn-bushes; and the reader will allow me to remark that the wait-a-bit thorn is one of the most aggravating things which the African continent produces. I do not know who gave this bush its name, but he was certainly somebody with a practical turn of mind. The wait-a-bit thorn is barbed like a fish-hook, and whenever you get into one of the bushes you cannot get out in a hurry; as fast as you release one piece of your clothing another gets entangled, and very often the stranger leaves the greater part of his wardrobe in the possession of the bush. This is particularly the case when he happens to be in a hurry; when an elephant, buffalo, lion, or other savage beast is charging upon a hunter, and a wait-a-bit thorn-bush stands in the way, the hunter has many lacerations, both of clothing and flesh, in order to escape. The natives treat one of these bushes with the greatest respect. Jack suggested one day that the natives went naked because they could not afford to supply thorn-bushes with clothing.

We outflanked those wait-a-bits and moved into the forest, where there were no worse things than creepers. Every few minutes we paused to listen, and before a great while we heard the elephants breaking branches, and evidently feeding leisurely. Mirogo led the way, and I followed, with Kalil close at my heels, carrying my gun. We had got quite close to the herd, whose size we could not make out, though Mirogo thought there were not fewer than half a dozen elephants in it.

We were about a hundred yards away—perhaps a hundred and fifty—when the elephants paused in their feeding and began to snort uneasily. Mirogo fell back to me, and whispered that he thought something was disturbing them on the other side. It was evident we had not disturbed them, as the little wind there was blew from them to us. I concluded that it was a rhinoceros, or perhaps a buffalo, which was beyond them.

The elephant is not friendly to either of those animals, and he is especially hostile to the rhinoceros. When two of those creatures meet face to face there is pretty sure to be a fight. They do not exactly go around hunting for an encounter, but they do not, on the other hand, make any great effort to avoid one. They are terrible antagonists, the horn of the rhinoceros doing fearful work in ripping up the elephant, while, on the other hand, the elephant's tusks are apt to make deep perforations in the thick skin of the rhinoceros.

The crashing in the woods sounded nearer, and the character of it showed that the animals had stopped feeding and were moving toward us. I seized my gun and got ready for work; and I was not a moment too soon in doing so. A stately bull-elephant appeared, walking slowly, head on, in my direction. I was screened from him behind a tree, and the course that he was taking cut me off from anything but a shot directly at the forehead. He was within twenty yards of where I stood, and had not perceived me. Mirogo was off at one side, and Kalil was crouched flat to the ground directly behind me.

CHAPTER XIV.

HUNTING GIRAFFES—NOVEL MODE OF CAPTURE—A BIG SNAKE.

The elephant presented a good broadside toward me, and I fired; or rather I went through the motions of firing, without doing so. The cartridge was defective, and the hammer of the rifle gave forth, as it descended, the disappointing thud with which every hunter is acquainted. It is not much of a sound, but it was enough to send the elephant scampering through the forest.

My disappointment can be, as the reporters say, "more easily imagined than described." Not only was I disappointed, but I was angry—angry all through; and if the maker of that cartridge had been in my reach I am sure I could have wrung his neck.

I followed up the elephants, but it was no use; they had taken the alarm, and were making off through the forest a great deal faster than I could go.

When fully satisfied of the vanity of my pursuit I turned about and started for camp. It was too late for me to join my friends in the hippopotamus-hunt, and so I remained around camp until they arrived.

They had not much to boast of—only one hippo between them; but they proposed that we should try it again the next day, unless something better offered in the meantime. I assented, and added that I thought a change of game would be beneficial, as elephants were getting monotonous. When we went to bed we were fully possessed of the determination to pursue the hippos; but Africa is a good deal like other countries—you never know what a day will bring forth.

So it was in our case. While we were preparing for our day's work one of out runners came in and reported a herd of giraffes in the open country to the south. That was a new kind of game for us, and we determined to go for them. Giraffe-hunting requires some good work on horseback, and also requires good shooting.

We struck out in the direction indicated by the Kafirs, and about three miles from camp came upon the spoor of the giraffes. The country was thorny and stony, and pretty bad traveling generally, but we managed to get over it somehow or other. As we rose over the crest of a ridge I was ahead, and the first to catch sight of the animals; there were eight or ten of them in the group, and they were fully five hundred yards away from us. We struck into a gallop, paying little attention to the obstructions, and gained on them at a good rate; but it is the unexpected that always happens.

My horse had never seen a giraffe before, and when I came within about twenty yards of the herd he stopped and trembled with fear. I drove the spurs into him and managed to start him, but he was as scared as a country girl when she thinks she sees a ghost.

Harry passed me and ranged up close to the giraffes, which had materially widened the distance between me and them. The sight of the other horse gave mine confidence, and away he went as though he had suddenly found out that a giraffe is as harmless as a sheep. Harry picked out the very animal that I had selected for myself—a handsome cow. I picked out a bull which was running away from the herd and making a course for himself; he was a splendid fellow, and could go at great speed, covering as much ground with one bound of his long legs as my horse could cover with three.

When I got the bull separated from the herd my horse seemed to enter into the spirit of the thing, and dashed on through everything. I had brought along a Winchester, thinking it would be better for the business in hand than a Remington, and it did not take me long to find out that I was right. There was no possibility of dismounting to take aim, and, moreover, the giraffe was such a huge beast that it seemed as if he could be hit as easily as the side of a barn. But, after all, he is not very vulnerable, and a bullet must be well planted to disable him.

Ranging up alongside of him, and not more than ten yards away, I fired, hitting him somewhere in the neck. The shot did not seem to have any effect on him, except to turn him in my direction. Whether he intended to charge, or just made a movement of observation, I do not know; but his great head and neck towered above me like a huge tree over a small house. It seemed as if, by stooping and laying my face close to the horse's neck, I could have gone under him without touching his belly. I never realized that any animal which walked was as large as that beast.

I gave him four or five shots, planted as best I could plant them, but without any very serious effect. The next shot, however, brought him down, as it hit him in the fore-shoulder and smashed it all to pieces. When I fired that shot I do not think I was more than two yards from him. The horse stopped as the giraffe fell, and he looked the strange beast all over with the curiosity of a countryman at a menagerie. He did not seem so much alarmed at the appearance of the beast as he was at the powerful odor which arose from him. There is a strong smell about the giraffe, which doubtless the reader may have noticed when looking at these creatures in a show.

Harry brought down his game about half a mile farther back than where I shot mine. Jack was equally fortunate, as he killed a cow; in fact, he was more fortunate than either Harry or myself, as his cow was the slickest and fattest of the three animals. I cut off the mane and tail of my giraffe as a trophy, and also took out the tongue, which is the most delicate portion of the creature. In fact, this rule holds good about most of the African game.

We saved the meat from Jack's cow, and found it very tender and good; the other two giraffes we skinned, and left the meat for the natives and wild animals. There was a Kafir village a mile or so from where our hunt took place, and you can be sure that not much of that meat was wasted. If there are any natives in the vicinity where you have shot an animal, the lions, hyenas, and jackals have very little chance for a feed, as the negroes speedily dispose of all they can hold—which is a great deal—and what they cannot hold they carry away.

Giraffe-hunting is very good sport, but it is less dangerous than hunting elephants and buffaloes, for the reason that the giraffe is naturally an inoffensive animal. He can go at a smashing pace, and it is only by fast riding that he can be overtaken. At one time I shot six of them in three days, but I used up two horses pretty thoroughly in doing it.

I had a stern chase after one of them, which I came in sight of one day while the wagons were on the road. It occurred to me that I would follow the example of the man in California who was chased by a bear one morning directly into camp, his friends shooting the beast just as he arrived there. The man ran through the camp, and paused as he heard the shots. Coming back, he quietly remarked, "I bring in my game alive!" I thought I would manage it so as to fetch that giraffe to the wagons before killing it.

I headed him after the first shot, and, by keeping wide away from him and shouting occasionally, drove him in a circle, and fired a finishing shot within two hundred yards of the wagons. We went into camp at once, and had a grand feast without the necessity of carrying the meat any appreciable distance.

Another of the giraffes that I killed at this time plunged headlong into a tree when he received the finishing shot. His head caught in a fork of the tree about twelve feet from the ground, and remained there wedged fast. I can hardly say that that giraffe died "with his boots on," but he certainly died standing on all-fours, and remained there till he was cut down.

The next day was the time set for our visit to the camp of the ladies, and for luncheon with them. Over our supper after the giraffe-hunt we had an extended debate on the subject; a considerable part of the debate had reference to our costumes, and consisted principally of lamentations.

"What swells we would be," said Jack, "if we only had our New York and London wardrobes!"

"I'm afraid we'd get a mob of the niggers after us if we should come out fitted for a promenade on Broadway or Pall Mall," replied Harry. "These people are patient and long-suffering in enduring the vagaries of foreigners that come here, but they never could stand that."

"Isn't it quite possible," I added, "that our hosts might not appreciate our efforts in their behalf if we arrayed ourselves in gorgeous style to appear before them!"

"They would appreciate the effort," said Harry, "though they might not admire the taste. Anyway, I'll warrant they'll be dressed a good deal more after civilized fashion than after that of South Africa. But as to our get-up, they didn't seem to take any offense at it when they called upon us, and it certainly wasn't of the kind suited to a fashionable parlor."

After a good many arguments it was settled that we would get ourselves up in the best of our outfits, including the checked shirts that had come into use on the day of our luncheon. We had already had our best suits sponged down and made fairly presentable, and on these we hung our fate.

When we were saddling up next morning, preparing to start, Harry suggested that we take our rifles along, and perhaps do a little stroke of hunting on the way. I opposed this, and then we had another brief discussion, which ended in a compromise: we did not take any of the heavy weapons, but only our lighter pieces, Jack and I carrying our smallest rifles and Harry equipping himself with a shot-gun. We were thus kept out of the temptation of chasing any big game that might fall in our way, but would be able to cope with game-birds and small animals.

In our ride across the country toward our destination we had proof of the correctness of the adage, "What odd things we see when we haven't got a gun!" Off to the south we could make out a troop of giraffes; to the north, at the edge of the forest already described, half a dozen elephants were in sight, and offering a splendid chance to the hunter properly equipped for them. When within about two miles of the amazonian hunters we descried a herd of buffaloes, and also, half a mile away from them, a herd of elands—a dozen at least. What splendid sport there was within our reach! But our weapons were not adapted to it.

Jack remarked that the game "would keep," and we might have a chance for some fun the next day.

Harry suggested that we send back to our camp for our heavy rifles, and then invite the ladies to take a run with us after luncheon, cutting that meal a little short to suit the circumstances.

Jack replied that we might be treading on dangerous ground to do so. By making the suggestion we might force them to do something much to their dislike; declining to do so, they would show the white feather as hunters; and they might not be at all desirous of letting us see their skill, or the lack of it.

"That's so," said Harry; "I didn't think of that feature of it. Guess we'll say nothing about it, nor about the game that we saw on our way."

"Oh, as to that," said Jack, "there's no harm in mentioning the game in a careless sort of way, just as though it were an every-day affair with us; and we can add that there will be a good chance for sport to-morrow. Then, if they choose to propose a joint hunt, you bet we'll accept the suggestion and lay our plans accordingly."

We had a use for our small arms, though not in the way we had expected. The sun was hot, and we rode in under a little clump of trees to rest awhile in their shade. We dismounted, and were about to throw ourselves on the ground when Jack espied an enormous snake directly above us, and darting his head as if he resented the intrusion we had made upon his domain.

"Now for your shot-gun, Harry," said Jack, as he called attention to the reptile; "give him both barrels!"

CHAPTER XV.

HOW THE SERPENT WAS CAPTURED—HOSPITABLE
RECEPTION—MYSTERY OF A DONKEY.

"Hold on," I said; "that will blow his head all to pieces; we want to save his skin with as little injury as possible."

"Well, how are you going to do it?" queried Jack.

"Lasso him and strangle him," I answered; "if necessary, we can put a rifle-ball through his head—that won't damage it much—but I'd rather save him whole and untouched."

Our after-rider and fore-looper had accompanied us, and I immediately called to them. They fastened their horses to a tree, and I shouted to the fore-looper to bring the coil of rope that hung at his saddle-bow.

I told him to make a noose at the end of the rope, and try to throw it over the snake's head. He was disinclined to go very near the serpent, but I gave the assurance that we would see that no injury came to him, as we stood ready with our guns. "We'll kill the fellow anyway," I said, "on general principles. We'll shoot him all to pieces rather than let him get away, and if he makes a spring at you we'll attend to him."

The fore-looper got the rope ready, and while he was doing so the after-rider, by my directions, cut a stick about ten feet long. I tied a piece of rag on the end of the stick, to attract the attention of the snake when the stick was held up. At the same time a similar stick, with prongs about two feet in length, was prepared, and the noose of the rope was fastened to it by tying it with a bit of twine against the stick at the fork, and also at the ends of the prongs. When all was ready the fore-looper held up the stick with the rag, just out of reach of the snake as he darted his head. It attracted his attention, and he made a dive for it, and then a second dive. As he made the second attempt to reach it, the stick with the noose of rope was held up, so that he darted his head directly through it.

I was holding on to the rope, and the instant that he fell into the trap I pulled away with all my energy. The rope tightened around the creature's neck, and we had him secure. We all lent a hand at pulling him, and it was hard pulling, you may be sure. He tightened his coils around the tree and refused to let go; I was not at all sorry that he did so, as this enabled us to get a firm grip around his neck. Not content with the one cord for strangling him, we put another about him, and drew that just as tightly as we had drawn the first. In a little, while his strength relaxed, his coils loosened, and he came to the ground.

Here a new danger awaited us. He thrashed around at a lively rate, and it was necessary for us to be very vigilant to avoid being hit by his tail, which struck tremendous blows. In fact, Jack was knocked down by one of them, but he was up with the quickness of lightning and out of the way of the snake's coil. Now and then he would hit against a tree, tighten a fold or two about it, and that, of course, would set us to pulling again. While he was thus clinging to a tree we bent his head around another tree, and then the after-rider pushed a knife into his throat and started a furious stream of blood.

"I think that will settle him," said Jack; "he'll bleed to death in a little while, and then you'll have his skin safe and sound, with the exception of the little hole at the neck."

"It will take all day for him to become quiet," I replied; "I have seen this sort of animal before, and he has a wonderful hold upon life. He won't be through squirming until sundown."

Knowing that he could not possibly loosen the cords about his neck, and that his death was only a question of time, we sent the fore-looper back to camp to bring some of the Kafirs to watch the place, and, when the snake was sufficiently quiet, to remove his skin. One of our men was an adept at such work, and I particularly cautioned the fore-looper to put the matter in his hands. Then we rode on to our destination.

We were received in front of the kraal by the manager, whom I have already mentioned, and also by numerous Kafirs and dogs. The manager disappeared to announce our arrival, and we dismounted and gave our horses in charge of the Kafirs. Presently the manager returned, and invited us inside to the tent where I was received at my first visit.

The ladies were ready for us, and greeted us most cordially. They were clad after the manner of civilization, their dresses being of the tailor-made pattern, and of good, though not expensive, material. The garments were evidently made for use rather than show, and had been kept for just such occasions as this. Their clothing made a sharp contrast with ours, but I do not think any of us bothered his head about that. We chatted on general topics, told about our hunting-experiences since we last met, and then Jack gave a picturesque account of our interview with the snake, to which Harry and I made occasional additions. Altogether I do not think the story lost anything in the telling; neither did the size of the snake. Miss Boland said she hoped that kind of game was not abundant in Africa—she had a decided antipathy to snakes, whether large or small; and Mrs. Roberts promptly acknowledged the same feeling.

We were still on the serpentine subject when Mrs. Roberts left the tent for a moment, and came back with the announcement that luncheon was on the table. We followed her lead into another and larger tent, which served as the banqueting-hall. It was more sumptuous than the lunching-place at our camp, as it was a real tent, while ours was a temporary affair, improvised out of a wagon-cover.

The luncheon began with cups of cold consommé, and I at once understood that they had a cook in their establishment far superior to ours. Then we had cutlets of African pheasant, fricassee of gemsbok, quail on toast—and real toast it was, too—and a salad made of the same plant as that which Jack used for his. A well-made omelet was one of the items of the feast, and we found afterward that they had sent twenty miles to a native village to obtain the eggs. They served claret and champagne. We had the laugh on them about the champagne, as we had given ice in ours; but it was not so much of a laugh after all, as they had cooled their champagne very fairly by wrapping the bottle in a towel and hanging it in a shady place where the air had free circulation. This is a trick well known in Africa and other warm countries for cooling water or other liquids. In most tropical lands they have porous jars which allow just enough of the water to pass through to keep the surface moist, and the evaporation of this water cools the contents of the jar.

We had green pease, and two or three other vegetables grown in far-off Europe or America, and brought thence in cans. The crowning glory of the feast was a plum-pudding—one of the most delicious that I ever ate. We accused one of the ladies of its construction, but, after indulging in a little badinage concerning it, they admitted that it was one of the products of the canning industry, and they were in no way responsible for it, except for having brought it along.

Well, by the time the luncheon was over we had very materially increased our acquaintance with the fair amazons. We mentioned in the most casual way the game we had seen while coming from our camp to theirs, and suggested with equal carelessness that we thought we would go in pursuit of some of it on the next day. At the mention of the giraffes, and the account of our experiences with them, Miss Boland said she had not yet hunted one of those animals, and hoped she would have an opportunity before long.

Mrs. Roberts made a similar remark, and before we had talked much longer it was agreed that we would make up a hunting-party for the next day. Before we separated it was arranged that we would meet on the following morning, at a point about midway between the two camps, to go in pursuit of the giraffes, in case they should be found near the locality where we saw them.

"I don't know," said Miss Boland, "that I can succeed in bringing down a giraffe, but I will try."

Mrs. Roberts expressed the same doubt and also the same determination, and then we dropped the subject.

Another surprise awaited us at the end of the luncheon, when the coffee was served, and a box of cigars was produced! There is not one African hunter of the male species in a hundred that carries a supply of cigars when going up-country on a hunting-expedition; and that two ladies should be thus equipped was certainly unexpected. The thought arose in our minds as to whether our fair hostesses were themselves devoted to the weed; they allayed our suspicions by telling us that they were not smokers, either of cigars or cigarettes, but had brought along a box of cigars under the impression that they would be useful when entertaining visitors. "I am told," said Mrs. Roberts, "that 'the cigars which a woman buys' are proverbial for their badness. I wish you would tell us frankly whether these are good or not. I bought them of a shopkeeper at Walvisch Bay, and he assured me they were the best in the market."

We all declared that the cigars were excellent, whereupon Miss Boland remarked:

"I suppose you mean they're excellent for South Africa?"

"Well," said Jack, "to be frank with you, they are not the very best cigars in the world, but they are really of very good quality. The shopkeeper undoubtedly told you the truth when he said they were the best in the market—that is, the market of Walvisch Bay. None of the ports of South Africa could produce anything better, with the possible exception of Cape Town, which is accustomed to more luxury than any other place. Set your minds at rest, ladies; any visitor to your camp who smokes a cigar will consider these of a superior quality. He is pretty sure to have been without one for a long time, and therefore will not draw comparisons between these and the choicest Havana weed that ever was made."

Soon after lighting our cigars we left the tent and strolled about the premises. To begin with, the tents were the perfection of neatness in their interior arrangements, and our hostesses were evidently good housekeepers. The little odds and ends about the place had been arranged in the most tasteful fashion, and they were evidently deriving a good deal of comfort from their wandering home. The kraal where the oxen and horses were made secure at night was strong and substantial, and the cleanliness of the interior showed a great deal of energy on the part of somebody.

Mrs. Roberts told us that their manager was a very intelligent fellow, and came from one of the Boer settlements in the Orange Free State. When they started out with him his ideas of neatness and order were very vague; but he was a good-natured chap, and they had succeeded in instilling him with their enthusiasm on that subject. "It is a case of eternal vigilance," she added, "and it is necessary for us to go over the regulations with him pretty nearly every day in order to hold him up to his duties. He has been up-country several times before, and consequently we cannot instruct him much upon his general work. He has managed so well," she continued, "that we have lost only two oxen and not a single horse since we started."

I replied that they certainly ought to be proud of such a manager, as they had been more fortunate than we.

Just as I made this remark we came around to where two donkeys were tethered. As soon as the animals caught sight of the ladies they strained at their tethers and held up their heads to be patted.

"Those are evidently your riding-animals," Harry remarked.

"Yes, we ride them sometimes," said Miss Boland, "though not as often as we do our horses. We bought the donkeys partly in the belief that they would be useful, and partly as a lark. We have had lots of fun with them, as they are the first animals of their kind ever seen in this part of South Africa. The natives have looked at them in wonder, and have queried whether the creatures are horses, dogs, or lions. In one village we came to the whole population engaged in a fierce discussion on the subject. One of the wise men said the donkeys were a new kind of dogs which the foreigners had brought along. Another said they were not dogs, but horses, and he called attention to the creatures' hoofs. Just then one of the donkeys brayed, and the crowd jumped back in astonishment and terror, crying, 'It's a lion! It's a lion!'"

CHAPTER XVI.

SNAKE CUTLETS AND STEWS—MISS BOLAND STALKS A
GIRAFFE—OXEN FOR HUNTING-PURPOSES.

We had a good laugh over the young lady's story, and after finishing our stroll and getting back to the tent we asked for our horses, bade our entertainers good-by—not failing to remind them of our engagement for the morrow—and then mounted and headed for home.

We stopped at the place where we captured the snake, and found, as we expected, that our men had already arrived and were skinning the reptile. It was no easy piece of work, as the body of the serpent continued to squirm, although life was really extinct. The boa-constrictor is very much like the turtle in this peculiarity, and what might appear to be cruelty in skinning the animal alive was not really so. Our men made a very good job of it, and we remained until it was completed. They followed us home with the skin of the snake, and left the body for the jackals and anything else that cared to eat it.

Jack was more than half inclined to take some pieces of the game along, so that we might have constrictor-cutlets for supper or breakfast. Harry and I opposed the idea, and told him he would have to eat alone if he did so; thereupon he abandoned the proposition. I can add by the way that I have eaten snakes of various kinds, and they are by no means bad eating, provided you are hungry and cannot get anything else.

My first experience in the serpent-eating line was on the North American plains, in a region where rattlesnakes abounded. Fresh provisions were scarce; and one day, when I was traveling with a party of mounted soldiers, we made our camp right in a colony of rattlesnakes, though we did not discover it until after all the tents had been pegged out and the camp arranged. We killed about thirty rattlers between the time we went into camp and sunset, and a dozen more were slaughtered during the night. The soldiers skinned the snakes, and served them up at breakfast under the name of "prairie-eels." Had they been called rattlesnakes I might have relucted, but as prairie-eels they were decidedly toothsome; the flesh looked like chicken, and tasted a good deal like it, too. I confess to a prejudice against eating snakes, but would rather do so any time than go downright hungry.

When we reached camp everything was quiet. Our cook had prepared us a very good supper, but after our bountiful feast with the amazons we could not do justice to it. There were, however, plenty of yawning mouths in the camp where it was welcome, and nothing was left over to be warmed up the next morning.

During the night we were disturbed by a troop of lions that tried to get into the kraal for a waltz among the oxen. They made several efforts to penetrate the thorny fence of the kraal, but were unsuccessful, though they disturbed the oxen a good deal and set them to bellowing in terror. We went out in the hope of bringing down one or more of the prowlers, but the night was so dark that we could not make out their forms distinctly. We fired where we thought we saw them, and brought forth a terrific roar, but we did not see anything drop.

Bright and early the next morning our manager began searching for the spoor of the lions, and easily made it out. He followed the retreating spoor for a good half-mile to where it led into a thicket of thorns. There he abandoned the chase, as he saw no blood upon the spoor to show that our bullets had told; and, furthermore, he had not lost any lions, as he remarked when he got back to camp. I admired his discretion, as he would have been decidedly at a disadvantage had he entered the thicket and found the lions waiting for him.

We breakfasted early in the morning, in order to be promptly at the rendezvous for the hunt with our friends. We were there on time, and so were they, and all were equipped for business. The ladies were habited as they were when I first met them in the forest—that is, incased in loose trousers and tunic, with gloves to match, and with dust-colored sola topees on their heads. They were accompanied by trackers, gun-bearers, and their after-rider, and they had brought along two dogs and two oxen as a part of their equipment.

When our salutations were over Jack apologized for being inquisitive, but said he would like to know how they proposed to utilize dogs and oxen in hunting giraffes.

"We don't know that we shall utilize them," replied Mrs. Roberts, "but we brought them along thinking they might be handy, on the principle set down by the lamented Toodles."

"You may laugh at us," said Miss Boland, "but I've done a little hunting with those oxen since we started out, and quite successfully, too."

"Have you hunted giraffes with them?" queried Jack.

"No, not yet," was the reply, "but I've hunted hartbeest and gemsbok, and one day I stopped a young buffalo by the aid of old David, the brindle-ox, and got him, too. So I thought it would be no harm to try him on a giraffe."

"Accept my congratulations, please," said Jack; "I didn't know so much could be done in the hunting-field with oxen. We have some saddle-oxen in our outfit, but haven't used them yet. The Kafirs ride them to keep them in training, and we are holding them in reserve in case of any mishap to our horses."

"Of course you are aware," said Mrs. Roberts, "that not a few African hunters have found saddle-oxen of great advantage in their journeys."

"Oh yes, I'm aware of that," said I; "Andersson, who discovered Lake Ngami, had a saddle-ox named Spring, which he rode over two thousand miles, and he naturally became much attached to the animal."