IN THE FOREST 



first camp is situated at Chicole. I kill a number of 

 waterbucks and hartebeests, one of which gave me a 

 hunt of five hours under a terrific sun, without a drop 

 of water to drink. My wife assisted in this hunt, 

 which ended in gaining the wounded animal. I also 

 killed several bushbucks, a duiker, and a small new 

 antelope, the oribi (Oribia scoparia 1 ). It frequents 

 the plains, where it goes about in pairs, which has 

 gained for it the Kafir name of sandwzadwza. 2 With 

 rufous hair, becoming white on the belly, it is of the 

 size of a goat. The buck carries, as a crown, sharp, 

 straight horns, varying from 5 to 7 inches in length. 

 It utters a cry somewhat like that of the reedbuck ; 

 and is one of the most difficult antelopes to shoot, when 

 running, with a bullet. Not only is it very swift, 

 but it frequently leaps to an astonishing height. I 

 have killed a good number with a shot-gun. The 

 flesh of the oribi is justly esteemed, especially by the 

 epicures of Central Africa. 



Our stay at Chicole would be delightful if it were 

 not for the mosquito, that odious fly which poisons 

 mankind, in infesting them with malaria. Unfortu- 

 nately, it is not the only one which sucks our blood, 

 many kinds of gadfly in the bush, bugs in the Kafir 

 huts, leeches in the marshes, and, above all, legions 

 of fleas dispute the same honour. 



But it is a matter of use, and one treats these little 



1 The author employs the obsolete name Nanotragus scoparia. 

 * Also called tzingodani. 



(63) 



