SECOND EXPEDITION TO SOUTH AFRICA 115 



abnormal and interesting peculiarities of a beetle, which had 

 an extra tarsus at least I think that was the peculiarity and 

 that tarsus was actually fimbriated ! A great deal of very 

 learned talk and discussion followed, and I thought what a 

 fortunate fellow I was to have written my description ; but 

 alas ! my turn came, and the same savant, after holding my 

 scrawl at every angle in the hope of deciphering the cacography, 

 at last gave it up, saying he regretted he could not make it out, 

 but fortunately the writer was in the room, and would perhaps 

 kindly tell them the history of the flies of which he had sent 

 a specimen. I longed for a repetition of the days of Korah, 

 Dathan, and Abiram just to swallow up that old gentleman 

 and his scarabaeus ; but I had to get up and explain that I was 

 sorry if they expected me to address them in the very erudite 

 way I had been listening to for the last hour, as I really had 

 no idea how many (if any) tarsi my fly had, and, moreover, I 

 was supremely ignorant whether their tarsi (if existent) were 

 fimbriated or not. They kindly begged me to tell my tale in 

 my own words, declaring they should much prefer it, and I 

 did so, and was dealt with in a most friendly manner. I cer- 

 tainly would rather have stood the charge of a couple of lions 

 at once than laid myself open to a catechism on tarsi and 

 fimbriae. 



We pushed down the Limpopo beyond the Siloquana ridge 

 four or five marches, and then crossing the river near a high 

 rocky hill returned to the Marique without anything of much 

 interest occurring ; but half-way between the junction of that 

 river with the main stream and the place where we left it 

 to get to Livingstone's station, I was again in trouble. 



It was three in the afternoon. We had followed a herd of 

 elephants since 8 A.M., and the traces of the dew of the pre- 

 vious night were still visible on the trail. Our chances of 

 coming up with them were so small that we abandoned the 

 pursuit and turned in the direction of the waggons. After an 

 hour or two the natives began to make pathetic appeals to the 

 state of their stomachs, suggesting that they had met with hard 



I 2 



