SOUTH AFRICA 27 



great pioneers in surveying and exploring ihe 

 continent of Africa. 



Amongst others who passed through the camp at 

 Maclontsie was the Hon. Maurice Gifford. On one 

 occasion he and I had ridden out some fifteen miles 

 from camp to a salt pan frequented by koodoos, 

 where he wounded one ; neither of us took any 

 particular notice of our direction as we went on in 

 pursuit, and eventually we lost track of the koodoo 

 in the thick bush. As it was getting towards sun- 

 down we thought it time to be making tracks for 

 home ; so taking a view of the situation, Gifford 

 pointed in a certain direction, saying he thought 

 the camp lay that way. I differed on the point, 

 maintainincj that the route we ouoht to take was 

 almost exactly the reverse to the way he proposed, 

 and according to Lord Fisher in a letter to The 

 Times, September, 19 19, " It is only damned fools 

 who argue." However, we agreed to differ, with 

 a mutual : "You can 00 to the devil, I am Sfoinof 

 this way." And so we parted. I had ridden on 

 my line for about an hour, and the sun looked like 

 sinking in a few minutes, so in order to have a last 

 look round I moved towards a small kopje. When I 

 had got within about one hundred yards of it I saw 

 my friend Gifford also making for the hill. We 

 met with the most friendly greetings, spent the 

 night at the bottom of the kopje, and resolved to 



