iQo In the Heart of Africa 



swamp, I contrived to get the almost unconscious Mambo into a 

 place of safety. The poor fellow was in sorry plight. He had 

 sustained a number of contusions, and was unable to walk. With 

 great difficulty we carried him through the swamp on to the firm 

 ground, and there we prepared a stretcher, on which we laid him. 

 I collected my guns, camera, and cartridges, which lay strewn 

 about ; the stock of the gun was splintered, but luckily the camera 

 had not suffered much; even the plate (facing page i86), which 

 shows the elephant before the attack, had not suffered by the 

 flight through the air. The next thing to be done was to cut 

 out the tusks, a task which made no small demands on our time 

 and strength. Late in the afternoon we were able to think of 

 getting homewards, and reached the camp at length in perfect 

 darkness after an uninterrupted march of five hours along the 

 banks of the Semliki and after an absence of fourteen hours, 

 during which time we had not rested for a moment. Two hours 

 later the ambulance came in with Mambo. The negro's strong 

 constitution brought him through ; he progressed towards re- 

 covery every day, and after the lapse of a week he was able to 

 resume his duties. 



On the evening of the day after the hunting incident just 

 related we were witnesses of a most thrilling display of natural 

 fire-works. A steppe fire of unusual dimensions spread over the 

 whole horizon, and traced out the contours of the mountains in 

 an unbroken fiery line against the heavens. 



In this district the natives kindle fires in order to clear the 

 ground of the older grass-growths, and so make room for the 

 fresh luscious young grass which game find so appetising. The 

 latter, particularly the elephant, stand in no fear of fire, but 

 assemble gladly at such spots to graze on the tender new shoots. 



Generally speaking, the steppe fires are of an absolutely harm- 

 less nature, but once, on Christmas Eve, they nearly proved fatal 

 to us. An immense line of fire rolled over the mountain ridges, 

 making direct for the thatched roofs of Kasindi. The phenome- 

 non being an everyday one, we took no notice at first, but 



