152 SPORT IN THE EASTERN SUDAN 



the evening I again went to the machan for an all- 

 night sitting. 



February 5th. Spent the night without success in 

 the machan. Just before dark the goat obviously 

 detected a movement in the bushes opposite, and 

 a plover called, and next morning I found that 

 two buffaloes had been drinking there. Moreover, 

 I also heard later that a lion had killed one out 

 of a flock of goats, encamped within earshot, the 

 owner of which surprised and, to some extent, startled 

 me at midnight by commencing to cough violently 

 within 10 yards of my machan. In the morning 



I took up the trail of the buffaloes. The shikaris, 

 particularly A., worked well, but unluckily the 

 buffaloes had gone straight away to the high grass 

 on the plateau. The result was that after 2 miles 

 we stampeded them 20 yards ahead, without being 

 able to see anything of them. We then followed 

 the trail again for a couple more miles into dense 

 grass and kittar, and again stampeded them without 

 being able to see anything. By this time it was 

 10 a.m., and the buffaloes thoroughly alarmed, so we 

 gave it up as a bad job, and got back to camp by 



II a.m. In the afternoon I went for an hour's 

 fishing, and started by catching a kinkin of 1 lb., 

 and followed up with a 17-lb. barbel. In the 

 evening I went for a final all-night sitting in the 

 machan. 



