396 AFRICAN CAMP FIRES. 



Therefore I climbed the little rocky ridge on 

 our left, and walked along near its crest, keeping 

 a sharp lookout over the valley below much 

 as one would hunt August bucks in California. 

 After two or three hundred yards I chanced on 

 a short strip of soft earth in which the fresh 

 tracks of the roan going uphill were clearly im- 

 printed. I could not without making too much 

 noise inform the others that I had cut in ahead 

 of them ; so I followed the tracks as cautiously 

 and quietly as I could. On the very top of the 

 hill the roan leapt from cover fifty yards away, 

 and with a clatter of rocks dashed off down the 

 ridge. The grass was very high, and I could 

 see only his head and horns, but I dropped the 

 front sight six inches and let drive at a guess. 

 The guess happened to be a good one, for he 

 turned a somersault seventy-two yards away. 



C. and Kongoni came up. The sun had just 

 set. In fifteen minutes it would be pitch dark. 

 We dispatched Kongoni for help and lanterns, 

 and turned to on the job of building a signal 

 fire and skinning the trophy. 



The reason for our strangely chopping wind 

 now became apparent. From our elevation we 

 could see piled thunder-clouds looming up from 

 the west. They were spreading upward and 



