255 HUNTING ADVENTURES. 



about eight or nine miles, I fotlnd my ammunition expended, and 

 not a single blesbok bagged, although at least a dozen must have 

 been wounded. It was now high time to retrace my steps and seek 

 my wagons. I accordingly took a point, and rode across the 

 trackless country in the direction for which they were steering. 



I very soon once more fell in with fresh herds of thousands of 

 blesboks. As it was late in the day, and I being on the right side 

 for the wind, the blesboks were very tame, and allowed me to ride 

 along within rifle-shot of them, and those which ran charged reso- 

 lutely past me up the wind in long-continued streams. I took a 

 lucky course for the wagons, and came right upon them, having 

 just outspanned on the bank of the Vet River. 1 could willingly 

 have devoted a month to blesbok shooting in this hunter's elysium, 

 but, having heard from a party of Bastards that the Vaal River 

 was low, and being extremely anxious to push on, I inspanned, 

 and continued my march by moonlight. Before proceeding far 

 we discovered the deeply-imprinted spoor of an enormous lion, 

 which had walked along the wagon-track for several hundred 

 yards. We continued our march till after midnight, vast herds of 

 blesbock charging from us on every side. Lions were hearc 

 'oaring for the first time during this night. 



