50 ox THE TRACKS OF NATIVES. 



felt the blow as severely as the natives, who had gone 

 almost frantic with joy at the delightful idea of a 

 hippopotamus for dinner. Even the unnatural appe- 

 tite of the savages, however, would not induce them 

 to make another effort to secure the body, so afraid 

 are they of these alligators, who constantly carry oif 

 their women when drawing water from the river, 

 and often the men themselves. We now made tracks 

 for the leopard, which we found just as I had left it ; 

 and it and the bush-bock were carried into camp in 

 triumph- Late at night some Manganja — armed to 

 the teeth — visited us. They had heard shots fired, 

 they said, and came to see what was " up." When 

 they had satisfied themselves that we were English, 

 they brought us fowls, &c., to buy. 



Next day (28th August) we marched as usual at 

 6 A.M. The first five miles was over tlie same stony 

 midulating ground, and afterwards we entered an ex- 

 tensive plain, on which the heat was very oppressive. 

 During the day I saw a good deal of elephant spoor, 

 though not fresh, and footprints of men were visible 

 in many places on the ashes of the burned grass. Of 

 course the Makololos said they were Mavite, and I 

 took care tliat a sharp look out should be kept, and 

 enforced silence amongst the porters when passing 

 through different patches of forest. 



On nearino' Pamafunda, w^hile I was some hundred 

 yards ahead of my party, and accompanied by two 

 Makololos, we observed footprints, which told us that 

 we were close on the tracks of some natives. We 

 were at this time in a beautiful forest — some of it very 

 thick, and most of the grass burned. Taking the 



