CH. ii THE FIGHT WITH THE FOUR 17 



who had unfortunately got our scent and speedily 

 made off on each occasion that we were about 

 to come up with them. Nightfall had put a 

 close to a most disappointing day's hunt, and 

 worn out, ravenous with hunger and parched 

 with thirst, we had settled down to pass the night 

 at a spot about two hours' journey from the 

 Mbemcuru River, where we might have obtained 

 water, had we had the energy left to cover 

 the intervening distance. We had hoped, more- 

 over, that my four extra men, who were follow- 

 ing in our wake with my food-box, and a further 

 supply of water, would have turned up before 

 dark. But in this we had been doomed to dis- 

 appointment, and, as we had eaten nothing 

 since breakfast and drunk the last of our water 

 at 2 p. m., our frame of mind on retiring had 

 been anything but cheerful. 



At first streaks of dawn, we were up and about, 

 and though we felt considerably refreshed by the 

 night's sleep, our hunger and thirst were not a 

 bit abated. In spite of these discomforts for 

 we were all in excellent physical condition and 

 inured to every hardship I decided to follow up 

 the elephants we had heard in the early morning 

 hours, hoping to bag one or two by forenoon 

 and then make all haste for the Mbemcuru. Before 



c 



