74 THE GAME OF BRITISH EAST AFRICA. 



However, it seemed probable that it would be towards the higher ground away from 

 the river, somewhere to the westward. 



I then returned to camp, making a detour westwards so as to try to hit off 

 their spoor again, either going to or coming from the river. I found some nullahs 

 leading down to the stream, and noticed that a recent and very brief shower had been 

 sufficient to fill up a few little holes with water in their beds. As these were very 

 shallow and exposed to the sun it seemed certain that they would be dry again in the 

 course of a couple of days. However, among these there was fresh spoor of buffalo. 

 As it was then late in the day I followed these fresh tracks with more haste than 

 caution, with the result that the buffalo got my wind in thick bush, where they were 

 lying, and stampeded. I then returned to camp, arriving just after dark. 



Next morning about dawn a lion roared from the westward. As this has 

 nothing to do with the circumventing of the buffalo it will suffice to say that I 

 followed him to some stony hills westward, and in so doing hit off an upper bend 

 of the river, which had there swept round from the south. Above the bend was 

 a little swamp and signs of old buffalo spoor. They had, probably, been there 

 the day previous to that on which they had arrived at the grassy flat. 



On the evening of the third day my knowledge of the country was as shown in 

 Map 3. 



The following day, the wind being from the north, I followed a course parallel to 

 the stream westwards, in the hopes of hitting off some night spoor. In this I 

 was successful, finding traces after I had gone several miles. This spoor led me 

 north-west and then north. I followed it for ten miles or so and then gave up, 

 as it was getting late. During the whole of this distance the animals had not 

 stopped to feed, so it was obvious that they were trekking off to another grazing- 

 ground. Just before I gave up, the spoor came to the river-bed again and crossed it 

 twice. The channel here was perfectly dry, the steep, rocky bottom having given 

 way to a shallow, sandy one. It was therefore apparent that the river's course had 

 taken a bend to the north. It appeared, too, that there was no water here for 

 the buffalo to drink, so they were, probably, going to follow the river to some part 

 where it was again provided with pools. Having arrived at the spot they would, 

 probably, take up their quarters in the neighbourhood for a few days until they 

 had visited all the grazing-grounds in the vicinity. 



It will be noticed that these wary animals, during the four days I followed them 

 and the four preceding days (which latter knowledge I had gleaned from old spoor), 

 had never watered or grazed twice in the same place. 



My knowledge of the country up to date is contained in Map 4. 



