264 AFRICA SPEAKS 



that such methods of hunting this majestic animal 

 are allowed. 



We spent many hard days during this period of 

 working in bomas; days that started with the dawn 

 and ended with midnight; days of patient waiting 

 in blinds for scenes that never happened. About this 

 time Mike returned to camp and, with his experience 

 to guide us, I hoped to secure some special scenes I 

 wanted, but we had a series of minor annoyances that 

 prevented success. One day Mike was just on the 

 point of securing a fine scene of zebra and wildebeest 

 drinking together when some natives came along and 

 scared them away. The next day a leopard hung 

 around his water hole and frightened everything. At 

 my bhnd the wind shifted as the animals were coming 

 to drink, causing them to stampede out of camera 

 range. Next day it rained like the flood and drowned 

 me out. 



I was not prepared for this, so, when the deluge 

 came, Maniki and I sought shelter under a fair-sized 

 thorn tree, but in spite of it were soon soaked to the 

 skin. The cameras were well protected in their water- 

 proof cases, and as I didn't mind a cool shower bath, 

 I was not particularly peeved, excepting that it did 

 seem to take Jones a long time to come after us with 

 the truck. While waiting for him, I amused myself 

 by counting the vultures as they dropped out of the 

 sky to seek shelter. Later I watched countless millions 

 of flying ants as they issued forth from numerous ant 

 colonies close to the tree, and wondered where they 

 were going. When I pointed to them Maniki grinned 

 and said they were very good to eat, especially when 

 fried in butter 1 The season of long rains had com- 



