THE FRINGE-EARED ORYX 



downward to a distant heat mist which later ex- 

 perience proved a concealment to snow-capped 

 Kilimanjaro. The plateau also looked to be covered 

 with scrub. As we penetrated it, however, we found 

 the bushes were more or less scattered, while in the 

 wide, shallow dips between the undulations were 

 open, grassy meadows. There was no water. Iso- 

 lated mountains or peaked hills showed here and 

 there in the illimitable spaces, some of them fairly 

 hull down, all of them toilsomely distant. This was 

 the Serengetti itself. 



In this great extent of country somewhere were 

 game herds. They were exceedingly migratory, and 

 nobody knew very much about them. One of the 

 species would be the rare and localized fringe-eared 

 oryx. This beast was the principal zoological end 

 of our expedition; though, of course, as always, we 

 hoped for a chance lion. Geographically we wished 

 to find the source of the Swanee River, and to follow 

 that stream down to its joining with the Tsavo. 



About half-past one we passed our safari boys. 

 We had intended to stop and replenish their canteens 

 from our water drums; but they told us they had 

 encountered a stray and astonishing shower, and did 

 not need more. We left them trudging cheerfully 

 across the desert. They had travelled most of the 

 night before, would do the same in the night to 



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