130 MY SOMALI BOOK 



bush. The setting sun on my foresight was my excuse 

 when I missed mj^ shot, but the sun obUgingly went, 

 and presently I had another shot, to miss again at 

 150 yards ; I am not brazen enough to try and find 

 another excuse or I might say it was the dull light 

 this time ! I followed the buck I had fired at, thinking 

 his companions were with him, when suddenly from 

 behind some bushes only fifty yards away broke the 

 other two ; close though they were and obviously 

 frightened, instead of going straight away they circled 

 round to my right in full view, at the usual gerenuk 

 trot, long necks stretched out in front. 



My snap-shot at sixty yards at the bigger buck in 

 rear brought him down, to my satisfaction, for, as I 

 have said, I do not like a single as well as a double- 

 barrel for a running shot. The buck was not dead, 

 and as we reached him struggled to his feet ; Hen- 

 duleh caught him by the horns and called to me to 

 photograph them ! As it was already dusk I could 



not oblige him, and 

 ^^,^ the merciful knife 



quickly made an end. 

 We were back at 



Kotunwein on the 

 24th August. I had intended moving west at once, 

 but there were reports of lions in two directions, so 

 decided to stay a few days longer. 



The following afternoon I had an experience which 

 would probably have afforded some amusement to an 

 onlooker, but which I found most exasperating. I 

 was out on the Kotunwein Plain at about 5 p.m. 

 when, putting the glasses on to a Greater Bustard in 



