186 AFRICAN CAMP FIRES. 



seen abundant game elsewhere in Africa, but 

 nothing like the multitudes inhabiting the Kapiti 

 Plains at that time of year. In other seasons 

 this locality is comparatively deserted. 



The glass revealing nothing in our line, we 

 rode again to the lower levels, and again took 

 up our slow, painstaking search. 



But although three days went by in this 

 manner without our getting a glimpse of lions, 

 they were far from being days lost. Minor 

 adventure filled our hours. What elsewhere would 

 be of major interest and strange and interest- 

 ing experience met us at every turn. The game, 

 while abundant, was very shy. This had noth- 

 ing to do with distrust of hunters, but merely 

 with the fact that it was the season of green grass. 

 We liked to come upon animals unexpectedly, to 

 see them buck- jump and cavort. 



Otherwise we rode in a moving space cleared 

 of animals, the beasts unobtrusively giving way 

 before us, and as unobtrusively closing in behind. 

 The sun flashed on the spears of savages travelling 

 single file across the distance. Often we stopped 

 short to gaze upon a wild and tumbled horizon of 

 storm that Gustave Dore might have drawn. 



The dogs were always joyously routing out 

 some beast, desirable from their point of view, 



