96 ACROSS LANDS OF KIKUYU AND MASAI part ii 



then followed up its course. The river forked, and fortunately 

 I took the wrong branch. Before I had discovered that this 

 was only an insignificant tributary, I came across a trail in the 

 mud. I went on my knees to examine it, and found the foot- 

 prints of men, sheep, and donkeys ; so it was probably that of 

 our caravan. By going very slowly, often on hands and knees, 

 I managed to track it for about half a mile when I saw the 

 flicker of a fire. I crept cautiously towards it, fearing it might 

 be that of a Masai kraal ; but as I approached I could see a 

 tent, and I knew I was " home." I called out to inquire, as I 

 approached, " Mpokwa rudisha? " (Has " Loaded pockets " come 

 back ?). But in spite of my effort to disguise my voice it was 

 recognised, and the men came rushing out to greet me, shake 

 my hands, and lead me into camp. I found that Omari and 

 some of the men were out on the search, and that since four 

 o'clock there had been great anxiety owing to my non-appear- 

 ance. I ridiculed the fear of my losing the way, and told 

 them what a charming day I had had ; but I did not think it 

 necessary to add that the feelings of self-reproach and fright 

 that had possessed my soul, from the time when I realised that 

 I was thoroughly lost, until I picked up the trail half a mile 

 from camp, had more than outbalanced the charm of the 

 scramble over the peaks of Doenyo Nyuki. 



The next day I climbed the cliff above the camp to con- 

 clude the examination of the lake terraces, but it rained all 

 day, and the jungle was so sodden with moisture that I could 

 not do as much as I wished. At noon I found a deserted 

 Masai kraal, and crept for shelter into the only hut that still 

 retained a roof; but it was already occupied — by the bodies 

 of two Masai in an advanced stage of decomposition ; so I ate 

 my frugal meal in the rain. This was my first experience of 

 the Masai, and it was not a pleasant introduction. A short 

 time before reaching camp I saw some more members of the 

 tribe, and this second meeting at one time promised to be 

 livelier than the first. Unexpectedly I came across a number 

 of them tending a herd of cattle. Some of them drove the 

 animals away, and the rest walked towards the path as if to 

 intercept me from camp. They waited about fifty yards from 

 the path, and we tried to talk ; but as neither side knew a 

 word of the other's language, the conversation was not in- 



