go THE GAME OF BRITISH EAST AFRICA. 



cannot be far away, for their scent is strong. A little later, in the half-lights, 

 a ghostly form steals through our midst, presently followed by two more. They 

 neither heed us any more than we do them. They are " those of the mane " 

 returning home full after their night's kill. They wear a sheepish look and seem 

 to feel uncomfortable in our presence. 



Presently the leader of our herd starts walking slowly forwards, grazing here and 

 there as he goes, whilst we follow spread out at irregular intervals. We are going 

 down to the pools to drink. At the same time we hear the movement of the kongoni 

 travelling in the same direction. Some of the younger ones frisk up from behind, and 

 the sound of their absurd up-and-down canter is unmistakable. Down by the pools 

 are a few clumps of thorn trees and some long grass and reeds, where amid the longer 

 grass of the bottom lie a few bleached skulls. By the smell around here we know that 

 the three ghostly forms we saw, stopped to drink, but they have now moved on, 

 probably going to the thick reed-bed a few hollows farther down. All round the pools 

 is earth and mud deeply trodden in by other game. There is a great black object in the 

 long grass making a lot of pufhng and noise over his drink. He does not see us till 

 we are close by, and we respectfully wait till he has finished. Down the opposite 

 bank are coming a herd of graceful Grant's gazelle, and from far away behind comes 

 the sound of roaring from a rocky nullah near the hills, that is another party of lions 

 either settling down there for the day or pretending to settle down before going 

 elsewhere to he up. 



Suddenly there is a sharp, spitting, cough-like sound from up the bank. All the 

 kongoni look up and see one of their party above gazing intently at something. 

 Some of the others slowly make their way up the bank and stare in the same direction, 

 while all the game about waits on the alert. Even the old rhino cocks up his ears. 

 After a long stare they all come down again. It is a false alarm, just like those 

 kongoni to disturb everybody at their drink, but we will score off them later. 



We have our drink and ascend the opposite bank, where are a couple of 

 Thomson's gazelle, male and female, tearing round and round in circles. The 

 kongoni are still at the pools. 



It is now light, but the morning mists are hanging round the hollows. A couple 

 of dark objects are crawling over the plain. They stand silhouetted for a moment 

 against the sky-line before dropping over the edge. From their shape and sloping 

 quarters and the even way they move it is easy, even at this distance, to recognise 

 them as a couple of hyaenas, belated scavengers of the plains. Presently a few more 

 of these forms appear from different quarters and drop over into the same rocky 

 gorge. For that is hyaena valley, a steep, rocky nullah, full of scrub, and the whole 



