WILD LIFE ACROSS THE WORLD 



what the boys, huddled in their leaf shelters, obviously 

 considered to be grand music. 



By the following morning the weather had cleared, 

 and once more we made an early start. Beautiful 

 butterflies flitted past us, tempting me greatly to try 

 for a capture ; but as we had to trek against time, 

 having only a limited amount of food, delays were 

 out of the question, and so, regretfully, I had to let 

 the insects pass. After tramping some time we came 

 across the fresh spoor of buffalo ; then once more 

 the leeches began to worry us; and as if they were 

 not enough, biting ants attacked us from time to time. 

 As the day wore on the heat became considerably 

 worse, and for a good part of the way we were 

 struggling along up to the knees in water. Finally, 

 we decided that as soon as we reached the bank of the 

 river we would camp down, and it was indeed a 

 welcome relief when one of the boys who had been 

 sent on ahead returned to say that we were quite 

 close to it. I 



Just as we reached the bank I saw on a small tree 

 what I took to be a swarm of flies. Incautiously, I 

 went close to investigate, and got badly stung on the 

 neck, the insects proving to be a species of bee or wasp. 

 However, the river made up for all our trials. The 

 boys dashed right into the deep water quite regardless 

 of the many crocodiles, though Clarke and I contented 

 ourselves with sitting in it up to our necks, Clarke 



22 



