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MY SOMALT BOOK 



brought me luck — my bag would have been incomplete 

 without a lesser kudu. Several of the larger antelopes 

 are more or less ungainly, but the lesser kudu need 

 fear no comparisons. The poise of the elegant head, 

 and the grace of the bound with which it clears the 

 highest bush in its way are perfect, and the pretty 

 striped coat is in keeping with the rest. Several of 

 the Somali antelopes are lovely creatures, but the 

 consensus of opinion awards the palm of beauty to the 

 lesser kudu and, I think, with justice. 



Breakfast with H., and then, leaving the kudu 

 head and skin to be dried and sent after me, Elmi and 

 I started at about 1.30 p.m. to ride the 25 miles to 

 Deragodleh. After passing Lafarug we began to look 

 out for dhero, as I had yet to obtain a specimen of 

 the lowland varietv. At about 5 o'clock we viewed 

 a party of half a dozen as we thought. On nearer 

 approach they struck me as very tall and brown for 

 dhero, and next minute their long necks 

 became more in evidence and betrayed 

 the gerenuk, in unusually open country 

 for them, which explained our mistake. 

 The big buck behind showed a fine 

 pair of horns and I determined to have 

 them. A convenient nullah gave me 

 the opportunity of getting within a 

 hundred yards out of sight, and I 

 bagged the best gereniih I had come 

 across, 14-inch horns. The head strapped on behind 

 the mule's saddle, we rode on to Deragodleh, arriving 

 there after dark. 



There I met an old Somali who had been a havildar 



