Il6 THE GAME OF BRITISH EAST AFRICA. 



If you have made an error of judgment, and you see its head and not its 

 flank come out on the farther side of the bush, wait till it has its head down 

 grazing or turned away from you, or else take some other opportune moment, then 

 crawl to a flank so as to get it covered again by the screening object. If in the 

 first instance, after approaching for a short time, all remains satisfactory and you 

 have not brought the animal into view, lean slowly outwards until you get a sight 

 of its flanks, by which to readjust your bearings for a further advance. Directly 

 the least portion of it comes into view lie perfectly still till it draws out of sight 

 again ; then make your next elliptic advance with the aid of the new data you have 

 obtained. When you have reached the cover sought for your next step will be 

 to ascertain the animal's exact whereabouts and how far distant it is. If you 

 cannot see through the bush the branches may be lightly parted on the shady 

 side, or you may look round the edge on the shady side, but not over the top. 



If you always choose the side in shadow and make no sudden movement you 

 will practically never be seen. 



After untold exertions and precautions you will find on most occasions, on 

 reaching the desired piece of cover, that the animal is still too far off, or that 

 during your manoevures it has walked much farther than you expected and is as 

 remote as ever. But do not give way to despair, so long as the quarry is still 

 unaware of your presence, there is always a chance of coming up with it. If 

 there is no cover immediately ahead which may be utiHsed, the only thing to do 

 is to sit down and await developments. It is on the cards that the animal may 

 turn round and walk back towards you, or it may pass over a rise or disappear 

 into a dip, or get somewhere in line with another piece of cover, any one of 

 which will give you the opportunity to make another forward movement. When 

 there are several animals be careful that they have all moved on or are all out of 

 sight, or otherwise provided for, before you emerge. For this, glasses will be found 

 invaluable. Glasses are also indispensable aids to the detection of game behind 

 imperfect cover, as at once you are placed in the position of one looking through 

 the interstices of such cover from about a third or a quarter of the actual 

 distance. Powerful glasses reduce to an enormous extent the advantages gained 

 by imperfect cover on the part of animals. 



When stalking one animal do not fail to keep a constant look-out in every 

 direction for others, as they have an astonishing way of suddenly cropping up from 

 behind cover, or from what is apparently perfectly visible open space, but which in 

 reality contains some little hidden dip or fold. In this way you sometimes find 

 yourself nearer some other animal which you had no pretensions of stalking, but 



