44 AFRICAN ADVENTURE STORIES 



wetted the grass so that it would not ignite. 

 The big fire, however, had gained such headway 

 by being driven with the wind that the heat 

 dried the grass far in advance of the flames. 



Time and again grass torches were applied, 

 but each time, as we passed on to kindle other 

 spots, we looked back to see the blaze gradually 

 die down and finally flicker out entirely. With 

 anxious faces we gazed at each other, and we 

 wondered if, after all, our efforts would be fruit- 

 less. 



A large bundle of dry grass was then thrown 

 into a thick patch of withered foliage and the 

 torch applied. It blazed up briskly and in a 

 few minutes was a seething mass of flames. 

 Waiting only long enough to make sure that the 

 fire had actually started, we urged the men to 

 bring more grass, and in a few minutes a succes- 

 sion of fires were burning all along the line. 



While the dew had hindered us in one respect 

 it had assisted us in another, for we found it 

 comparatively easy for the porters with the 

 branches to beat out any blaze that worked 

 around behind or succeeded in jumping the gap. 



It surely was a relief to watch those little 

 blazes gradually growing larger and larger and 



