A Thousand Miles in a Machilia 



along the foothills of the Michingi Mountains, 

 through some very dry forest country, in which a 

 few zebra and hartebeest were running. The 

 sun was growing intensely hot, and there was no 

 sign of water, so that, after two hours' marching, 

 we were very glad to reach a large dambo, in the 

 centre of which was a dry watercourse, and to hear 

 that if we followed it we should find water. Sub- 

 sequently this proved to be one of the head waters 

 of the Namitate, a tributary of the Bua river. 

 Another half hour or so brought us to a water hole, 

 and orders were at once given to pitch the tents on 

 the edge of the forest. 



The tent was scarcely up when a great hue and 



cry arose amongst the men, and A , running 



out to see what was the matter, was told that there 

 was a large python in the water hole. He saw the 

 snake sure enough, and shot it, but it disappeared 

 in the mud. The Angoulu machilla boys, however, 

 who liked snakes, determined to have it, and by 

 persevering and poking about in the mud with long 

 poles, succeeded at last in getting the reptile out, 

 and dragged it up to our tent with a rope ; even 

 then it was not quite dead, and required another 

 shot. Its length was ten feet nine and a half inches, 

 and the skin is now in our house at home. 



The sequel was rather amusing. The Angoulu 

 boys had intended eating it, but they got so chaffed 

 by the Angonies about their peculiar taste in meat, 

 that, notwithstanding the trouble they had had, 

 they suddenly refused to touch the python, and we 

 had some difficulty in getting it skinned. We 



84 



