OUR FIRST HUNTING EXPEDITION 



expensive to have cured. They are not nice animals 

 to shoot, being too much like our friend the horse ; 

 the one my husband shot brought tears to my eyes, 

 as the others would not leave it, but kept neighing 

 and calling to it to follow, going a little way then 

 waiting to look back. We had wandered some 

 way after the zebra and it was getting late, so we 

 left Saidi and a couple of porters to skin it and 

 bring in some meat for the others. We walked 

 hard for about two miles, and reached the top of 

 the escarpment just as it was dark. It was no 

 joke clambering down, stumbling and tripping over 

 boulders and loose stones, as it was very steep. 

 Baruku and the head porter appeared with a lamp 

 and burning wood, which by dazzling us hindered 

 more than helped us ; I know I came down more 

 or less on all-fours. Midway my husband fell and 

 twisted his ankle on a loose stone. My heart sank ; 

 however after a bit he could manage to crawl along, 

 and as soon as we were in camp I bathed it with 

 very hot water. We sent two boys back with a 

 lamp, but presently we heard a shot and a shout, 

 which made us nervous, fearing Saidi had missed 

 his way and a leopard had gone for one of them, 

 smelling the fresh meat. We anxiously sent off 

 three or four more boys with burning logs up 

 the escarpment, and shouted till we were hoarse? 

 but could get no answer. We wondered what the 

 colonel would say to us, if anything happened to 



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