398 A HUNTER'S WANDERINGS ch. 



On April 26th, having been travelling hard since 

 the previous afternoon, we reached Inkouane (a large 

 chalk-pan, in one corner of w^hich we found a Httle 

 rain water) just at daylight. In the middle of this 

 pan there were three waggons, left here last year by 

 the emigrant Boers, the oxen that pulled them 

 having died of thirst, besides ploughshares, a mill- 

 stone, and other articles. 



April i^th. — Still at Inkouane. A little before 

 mid-day some Bushmen came to the waggons saying 

 that a troop of elands had passed the pan early in 

 the morning, and asking us to take the spoor and 

 shoot them some meat. So Miller and I saddled up 

 the horses, and following the spoor came up with 

 the elands about 1 p.m. There were a few full- 

 grown cows and a great many young animals, but 

 there was not a bull amongst them. I soon galloped 

 alongside of one and shot her, as the wind being 

 from the wrong quarter she would not drive towards 

 the waggons. Finding she was very poor, I rode 

 after Miller and the troop again, and eventually ran 

 down the best -looking cow amongst them, after a 

 hard burst, for in this heavy sand a horse cannot 

 gallop at any great pace, the extra weight of its 

 rider sinking it much deeper in the yielding soil than 

 the unburdened eland. This cow proved to be nice 

 and fat. Miller also shot two elands, so that the 

 Bushmen got lots of meat. 



Early on the morning of May i we reached 

 Tlakane, a valley with several pits of water in it, 

 having trekked about eleven hours from Touane pits 

 during the night. We found that three waggons 

 had left here the previous evening, taking the direct 

 road to Inkouane, so that we just missed one another. 

 About mid-day another waggon arrived from the 



