Cobus Buck 



putting to the utmost use all I had learned when 

 practising scouting on Salisbury Plain, with regard to 

 cover from folds in the ground, I had eventually to 

 take a long shot. I missed ; not by much, though, 

 as I saw by the dust. The aim was a little high. 

 The beast rose and shook itself, somewhat like a dog 

 would, and looked in the opposite direction, where 

 the dust was rising down wind, and evidently much 

 puzzled in his mind as to where the danger had 

 come from. At this moment my extractor failed, 

 and I got a jam. It was no use, and I had to walk 

 disconsolately home. Just to annoy me, two herds, 

 cobus and kongoni, trotted gently past me under my 

 very nose, on the way back. 



About nine miles further I had to stop at a 

 place called Kitesa, as I heard there was no water 

 at the next camp. My porters afforded me some 

 amusement. They seemed to object to the site I 

 had selected for the encampment, and kept on 

 making short, weird noises. I soon discovered the 

 ground was covered with short, sharp thorns, which 

 apparently penetrated even their leathery soles, and 

 they moved about like Agag in the Scriptures, very 

 gingerly. The illustration depicts a group of 

 Unyoro porters at Hoima with gourds as water- 

 bottles and mats for sleeping on. 



There were a good many natives living round 

 who visited my camp. Their form of salutation on 

 meeting or passing a stranger is very weird. The 

 first man says "Otia" ("How are you?"). The other 

 replies "Ah-ou-ah," which is a sort of grunt, and 



43 



