ACROSS THE THIRST. 313 



that altitude. After five or six miles we over- 

 took the wagon outspanned. The projected all- 

 night journey had again been frustrated by the 

 lions. These beasts had proved so bold and 

 menacing that finally the team had been forced 

 to stop in sheer self-defence. However, the day 

 was cool and overcast, so nothing was lost. 



After topping the Mau we saw a few gazelle, 

 zebra, and hartebeeste, but soon plunged into a 

 bush country quite destitute of game. We were 

 paralleling the highest ridge of the escarpment, 

 and so alternated between the crossing of canons 

 and the travelling along broad ridges between 

 them. In lack of other amusement for a long 

 time I rode with the wagon. The country was 

 very rough and rocky. Everybody was excited 

 to the point of frenzy, except the wagon. It had 

 a certain Dutch stolidity in its manner of calmly 

 and bumpily surmounting such portions of the 

 landscape as happened in its way. 



After a very long, tiresome march we camped 

 above a little stream. Barring our lucky rain 

 this would have been the first water since leav- 

 ing the Kedong River. Here were hundreds of 

 big blue pigeons swooping in to their evening 

 drink. 



For two days more we repeated this sort of 



