VII THROUGH A GAME COUNTRY 77 



I finally reached my destination at about 9 a.m., 

 only to find that the man I had come out to see 

 was away on a few days' shooting trip after lions. I 

 rested for about half an hour at his camp, and heard 

 from one of the men left on the place that lions in 

 this part of the country were very numerous and 

 troublesome. Only a short time previous to my 

 visit one of these daring beasts had come one night 

 close outside the donkey boina and by roaring 

 vigorously succeeded in stampeding the donkeys. 

 This w^as of course just what he wanted, for he 

 thereupon promptly seized one of them and ate it 

 close by. 



I thouofht that Abbudi and Mellauw would be 

 tired after their twenty-mile march, but they made 

 quite light of it, and we all started off on the return 

 journey in the best of spirits. When we approached 

 the spot where I had seen the fine eland we made a 

 careful search for him, but he was nowhere to be 

 discovered, so we pressed on campward without 

 further delay. 



When we had covered about a dozen miles of the 

 way I noticed in the distance eleven giraffe, all 

 standing behind trees and intently watching us as 

 we approached. As I did not want to shoot one of 

 these gentle and harmless animals I took no notice 

 of them and rode straight ahead. The giraffe stood 



