24 THE REDISCOVERED COUNTRY 



Sasa, Kongoni, Sanguiki, Sulimani, and Dolo have the 

 task of saddling up. Cuninghame and I circulate rap- 

 idly, keeping track of things. It is astonishing how 

 many wrong ways there are of saddling a donkey; but 

 most of the boys are bright, and are learning rapidly 

 all the little kinks. When the job is finished we make 

 a final inspection, seeing that the breeching, breasting^ 

 and cinches are all right, that the saddle is weU back 

 from the withers — an absolute necessity with donkeys 

 — that the pads are weU loosened along the backbone, 

 etc. All being in order, the men come up in pairs, 

 lifting the loads aboard. We cinch them in place, and 

 are off. 



During the day our chief concern is to keep those 

 blessed donkeys on their feet. Once one hes down, for 

 any reason whatever, it takes three men to get him up 

 again — one to urge, the other two to ease him of his 

 loads. Often he must be unpacked before he will rise. 

 As a general thing they toddle along well enough the 

 first part of the day, but toward ten o'clock they begin 

 to flop down in almost any likely place. A patch of 

 sand or dust seems irresistible. When such is en- 

 countered, everybody begins to yeU and shout and 

 rush to and fro trying to hustle them across. And if one 

 lies down, many others are apt to follow his example. 

 It is dusty, hot aggravating work ; but it has to be done 

 if we are to get into the unknown country at aU. 



Travelled aU morning through an Arizona-like coun- 



