4o8 A HUNTER'S WANDERINGS ch. 



time act as if there really was no water near, and 

 trek day and night until I got some. 



On May 29, about mid-day, we inspanned, having 

 first taken the precaution to fill every available cask, 

 pot, and calabash with water to drink along the road, 

 as my party had now been augmented by four 

 Makalakas that I had engaged on the Lake river. 

 Well, all that day we trekked on, all the night, all 

 the next day, and all the next night, without coming 

 to any water ; we passed pan after pan, but they 

 were all as dry as dust, and it began to look as if the 

 Bushmen for once in their lives had told the truth, 

 when they said there was no water on ahead. As no 

 waggon had travelled along this track for two years, 

 we found it very much overgrown and full of little 

 thorn-bushes that scratched the poor oxen to pieces. 

 Luckily, it was just about full moon, or we should 

 never have been able to hold the road through the 

 mopani forests. On the morning of the third day 

 the poor oxen that had been in the yoke, pulling day 

 and night almost without intermission ever since 

 leaving Sode-Garra, and had been without water all 

 that time, began to show signs of distress. They 

 were now too thirsty to feed, and when outspanned 

 for a short period to rest, stood round the waggons, 

 lowing and licking the tires of the wheels. 



On the morning of May 31, Miller, Sell, and I 

 walked on ahead, and were presently rejoiced to see 

 some hyaena and jackal spoor in the road, which we 

 thought betokened that there was water somewhere 

 near. About mid-day we came to a small hollow in 

 which there had evidently been a little water very 

 lately, and round which the grass was green. On 

 the edge of this little pan grew three enormous baobab 

 trees, to the top of one of which I climbed to survey 



