THE SETTIT RIVER 161 



a gazelle. A pack of baboons numbering nearly a 

 hundred provided an amusing spectacle by splashing 

 across the ford at full gallop, obviously in terror of 

 crocodiles, and leaping high into the air at every 

 bound. In fact, the noise at first suggested a herd of 

 buffaloes. On the way back to camp a couple of 

 oribi were eating rushes, but the stalk failed, as usual 

 with these wary creatures. In the afternoon I started 

 by trying to find whither the lion had retreated. 

 However, the grass and thorn were so thick in that 

 direction as to make search perfectly useless, so I 

 descended to the Settit Valley below camp. There I 

 at once saw a male waterbuck grazing on the opposite 

 bank, where the stream was not more than 30 yards 

 wide. The glasses showed that the head was a good 

 one, and I endeavoured to get opposite him ; but 

 just as I was getting close, two female waterbuck, 

 who had been grazing on the near bank among 

 some rushes, presumably got our wind and splashed 

 across the stream, which was barely knee-deep. 

 This roused the suspicions of the buck, who began to 

 walk away, and was rather over 100 yards off when 

 the stalk was completed. He was still moving, and 

 the shikaris whistled sharply, which brought him to 

 a standstill, and I took the shot. I had better luck 

 than I deserved, as the shot was a bad one, merely 

 cutting the skin above his shoulder. However, the 

 bullet knocked up a great cloud of dust in the high 



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