After half an hour of this Jim could restrain himself 

 no longer. He came over to where I lay and with a 

 look of severe disapproval and barely controlled in- 

 dignation, asked me for a gun, saying that he himself 

 meant to go out and look for Jock. It would be nearer 

 the mark to say that he demanded a gun. He was so 

 genuinely anxious and so indignant at what he con- 

 sidered my indifference that it was impossible to be 

 angry ; and I let him talk away to me and at me in 

 his exciting bullying way. He would take no answer 

 and listen to no reason ; so finally to keep him quiet 

 I gave him the shot-gun, and off he went, muttering 

 his opinions of every one else a great springy striding 

 picture of fierce resolution. 



He came back nearly three hours later, silent, 

 morose, hot and dusty. He put the gun down beside 

 me without a word just a click of disgust ; and as 

 he strode across to his waggon, called roughly to one of 

 the drivers for the drinking water. Lifting the bucket to 

 his mouth he drank like an ox and slammed it down again 

 without a word of thanks ; then sat down in the shade 

 of the waggon, filled his pipe, and smoked in silence. 



The trekking hour came and passed ; but we did not 

 move. The sun went down, and in the quiet of the 

 evening we heard the first jackal's yapping the first 

 warning of the night. There were still lions and tigers 

 in those parts, and any number of hyenas and wild 

 dogs, and the darker it grew and the more I thought 

 of it, the more hopeless seemed Jock's chance of getting 

 through a night in the bush trying to work his way back 

 to the waggons. 

 165 



