cH. IX] THE MAU ESCARPiMENT 205 



pitch camp comfortably ; then the waggons left us, with 

 their loads of hides and skeletons and spare baggage. 

 The third day we rose long before dawn, breakfasted, 

 broke camp, and were off* just at sunrise. There was 

 no path ; at one time we followed game trails, at 

 another the trails made by tlie Masai sheep and cattle, 

 and again we might make our own trail. We had two 

 Masai guides, tireless runners, as graceful and sinewy as 

 panthers ; they helped us, but Cuninghame had to do 

 most of the pathfinding himself It was a difficult 

 country, passable only at certain points, which it was 

 hard to place with exactness. We had seen that each 

 porter had his water-bottle full before starting ; l)ut, 

 though willing, good-humoured fellows, strong as bulls, 



I in forethought they are of the grasshopper type ; and 

 all but a few exhausted their supply by mid-afternoon. 

 At this time we were among bold mountain ridges, and 

 here we struck the kraal of some Masai, who watered 

 their cattle at some spring pools, three miles to one 

 side, up a valley. It was too far for the heavily laden 

 porters ; but we cantered our horses thither and let 

 them drink their fill ; and then cantered along the trail 

 left by the safari until we overtook the rear men just as 

 they were going over the l)riiik of the Mau escarpment. 

 I'he scenery was wild and beautiful : in the open places 

 the ground was starred with flowers of many colours ; 

 we rode under \ine-tangled archways through forests of 

 strange trees. 



I Down the steep mountain side went the safari, and 

 at its foot struck off nearly parallel to the high ridge. 

 On our left the tree-clad mountain side hung above us ; 

 ravines, wdth mimosas clustering in them, sundered the 

 foothills, and wound until they joined into Avhat looked 

 like rivers ; the thick grass grew waist-high. It looked 



