ii 4 BIG GAME SHOOTING 



affected, but all domesticated ones are, save the ass and the 

 goat, and the calf as long as it sucks. Man escapes scot free. 

 The flies settle on and bite him sharply, but no results follow. 



Supposing the poison to be alkaline, is it not possible that 

 the creic an acid known to be present in the blood of all wild 

 animals and to disappear as they become domesticated may 

 act as an antidote, more especially as man, on whom the 

 poison is innocuous, shares with the donkey, &c., this prophy- 

 lactic acid ? This pest, like all others, is held in check by an 

 antagonist, one of the ichneumons a rakish-looking creature 

 which catches and sucks it out on the wing, dropping the 

 empty cases much as the locust bird does the locusts. 



These tsetse have caused me sad searchings of heart. 

 The Geographical Society of Paris honoured me with their 

 medal, ' pour la decouverte du lac 'Ngami,' and I, in acknow- 

 ledging their highly valued distinction, sent them a short sketch 

 of the country through which we had passed, and a small bottle 

 of the flies, with an account of their habits, habitat, and the 

 poisonous nature of their bite. This account probably from 

 my confused style was entirely misunderstood, and when the 

 copy of the Proceedings of the Society reached me I found 

 I had been made to attribute the death of a native chief, 

 Sebitoani, to the poison of these insects, and also to state 

 that the oxen were maddened by their attacks, whereas the 

 poor things took their deathbites quite calmly with a whisk 

 of their tails, as is their custom with other flies and, as I 

 have already stated, human beings suffer no ill. I have tried to 

 correct this impression, but fear I may not have succeeded. 



When I came home I happened to meet Dr. (now Sir 

 Richard) Quain, the great toxicologist, and by him to be in- 

 troduced to Dr. Spence, to whom I told the story of the 

 tsetse, the result being that I was invited to attend a meeting 

 of the Entomological Society. Doubting my power of giving 

 any clear account before such an august assembly by word 

 of mouth, I wrote the few particulars I had to communicate. 

 When I entered, rather late, a gentleman was explaining the 



