V A HERD OF ELEPHANTS 47 



of the reeds, and the night's result was nil. The beating 

 next morning also proved a dead failure, the place being- 

 much too big for the number of men we had at our com- 

 mand. I then tried tracking the beasts by myself, but 

 they were by that time far too scared, and although I 

 stuck to it till 3 o'clock, I never got within sight of one. 

 Next day we tried taking up posts inside the reeds, with 

 the hope that the buffalo, when disturbed, might pass 

 within shot, but no such luck ! Once more I tried 

 tracking, and succeeded in nearly reaching a couple, but 

 they led me into such deep water that I had to give up. 

 Eventually I returned to camp, and had scarcely had tea 

 before we started on a three hours' march, after which, 

 as soon as my bed was up, I took a stiff dose of quinine 

 and turned in, feeling very tired after so much wading, 

 and almost expecting an attack of fever. 



The ground we had passed over was flat, with plenty 

 of grass and many villages scattered about, but the next 

 day's march took us into a lovely country of low, well- 

 wooded hills, with plenty of grass, which extended to 

 Arda Arto, on the bank of the Hawash. Shortly before 

 reaching that point, while leading, I came on the 

 tracks of a small herd of elephants which had just crossed 

 the road. I cantered back to stop H., who was stalking 

 a gerenuk, and he sent a couple of men to see where the 

 herd had gone, while the caravan continued on its march 

 and camped a mile further on. Very soon one of H.'s 

 men returned, with the news that the herd was close by, 

 feeding in a strip of jungle. H. then went out and at 

 lunch tim.e returned, having killed two. He was very 

 anxious for me to go back with him and kill some more, 



