THE REDISCOVERED COUNTRY 309 



November 9. — A fine sunny day. About nine o 'clock 

 a very ancient Wanderobo came in. He looked to be 

 a hundred years old, his skin wrinkled, his joints big, 

 his flesh all wasted away to the bones, his frame bent, 

 his face monkey-like and wizened, his eyes dim and 

 peering. I have never seen so aged a man afoot and 

 going. The old chief of the Wasonzi looked as old; but, 

 it will be remembered, he was only capable of sitting in 

 the sun. Nevertheless, this old boy came in quite 

 briskly, and without greeting or pause set to work in a 

 most businesslike way. He had on a hyrax-skin cap 

 and a skin cloak and carried a skin wallet and one 

 of the soft iron sword-knives. At once he attacked 

 that elephant, slowly and laboriously sawing off great 

 chunks of meat and dragging them to a pile beneath a 

 tree. He was entirely businesslike and paid no at- 

 tention to anybody. Cuninghame watched him a 

 while, and then in pity lent him a sharp knife. The 

 old man took it, handed Cuninghame his old sword, 

 and by signs commanded the latter to sharpen it! 

 Cuninghame meekly obeyed ! Hour after hour the old 

 boy delved away at that gigantic carcase, picking out 

 the choice bits — from a shenzi point of view. It was 

 cruel, hard work — for anybody — and we fully expected 

 to see him give out from sheer exhaustion. But 

 about three or four o'clock in the afternoon other 

 shenzis began to show up. There was enough for 

 everybody, but the enterprising ancient had all the 



