FIRING A MULE 



Two of the mules had rubbed backs, and as a great 

 svvelHng had appeared above the withers, I decided to 

 "fire" them. In this operation the beast is thrown, his 

 legs tied together, and, while he is held down, five or 

 six strips, 9 inches to a foot long, are burnt with a 

 specially made iron deeply into the flesh on either side, 

 close up to the backbone. The operation is a nasty 

 one to watch, the smell of the burning flesh being 

 especially repulsive. I do not think the animal suffers 

 very much ; at all events nine mules out of ten, directly 

 they are released, trot off to their companions and begin 

 feeding. Moreover, the process is generally successful, 

 the swelling disappearing and the wounds rapidly healing 

 up. In one case, however, in which the animal sweated 

 terribly under the operation, and afterwards swelled up 

 all over, it never recovered, and died a few days later. 

 At dusk we saw a hippo land on the other side of the 

 river, a little below camp, and walk along the shingle 

 with its nose close to the ground, just like a huge pig. 

 I took a rifle and went down, but darkness came on 

 before I could locate it among the scrub on the opposite 

 bank. 



Next morning, as we had to cross the river, I turned 

 out at 4.30, and by 6.30, three-quarters of an hour after 

 daybreak, every load was ready, strapped as high as 

 possible on the mules' backs. Half an hour saw the 

 whole caravan safely over, our only loss being a skin of 

 honey, which had been carelessly tied and come undone, 

 covering the rest of the load with its sticky sweetness. 

 The water, which had fallen a little in the night, was 

 3 feet deep in the centre. An hour's journey along 



