200 A SPORTING TRIP THROUGH ABYSSINIA chap. 



Stream, just forty minutes after being shot. In spite of 

 the crocodiles which the blood had attracted, the men 

 swam out to the carcase, and soon towed and rolled it 

 ashore. I took some good photos of the landing of the 

 three beasts, which proved to be a bull and two cows, 

 all full-grown. The bull was curiously marked with 

 white, especially about the legs and feet, several of the 

 toe-nails being cream-colour. We all worked hard and 

 by four o'clock had the head-skin and jawbones, besides 

 two feet, the tail, and some skin for a shield, taken off 

 the bull ; while 1 took the whole skull of one of the 

 others and the tusks and tail of the third. I was much 

 pleased with the day's shooting, for three hippos shot in 

 twenty minutes, and all recovered within the hour, is as 

 good a result as any one can wish for. In each case we 

 found the brain-pan smashed to atoms, while, except for 

 minute pieces of nickel, no trace was left of the solid 

 .256 bullets. I think it is therefore pretty certain that, 

 if the bullet is fairly placed in the brain, the animal will 

 float within the hour ; if this does not take place it is 

 the shooting which is at fault. 



On Sunday, nth March, we were busy boiling skulls, 

 cleaning and drying the feet and bits of hide, repairing 

 camp-kit, etc. During the day we saw hundreds of 

 people, who had been attending the Saturday market, 

 ford the river on their return to Gojam, The men for 

 the most part stripped and tied their clothes round their 

 necks in a bundle, while the women shortened their 

 skirts and then waded across, the w^ater coming up to 

 their waists as they crossed over hand in hand or cling- 

 ing to one another's clothes. 



