A MIXED BAG IN ORANGE RIVEE COLONY 135 



should meet with more of those beautiful members of 

 the Rostratula family, or with, perhaps, a full snipe, 

 avocet, or greenshank, I agreed readily enough to take 

 the beat along the spruit. As a long and broad strip of 

 the veldt on the farther side of it had been recently fired, 

 and there being not sufficient cover left to harbour a 



mouse on the blackened patch, de V and the beaters 



remained on the right-hand side of the rivulet, the 

 former walking in the centre of the line at about 100 

 yards distant from myself. In parts the rough veldt grass 

 — if grass it could be called — was waist high, with patches 

 of sage bush and other coarse herbage interspersed. I 

 had not proceeded far on my beat when a Basuto on my 

 right cried, " Pas oop, haas,^^ and the next moment a 

 leash of francolin rose with a great to-do between the 

 native and myself. The birds passed me left-handed 

 at not more than 25 yards' range, affording an absurdly 

 easy right and left. Holding, as I thought, well in front 

 of the leading bird, I pulled, but to my disgust he went 

 away as though he liked it, and I only succeeded in wing- 

 ing a young cock in immature plumage, which led my 

 henchman a merry dance across the scorching veldt ere 

 he allowed himself to be captured. The remaining brace 

 flew on and on until lost to view behind a belt of wait-a- 

 bit thorns. For some little time after the passing of 

 the francolin nothing was moved beyond an ugly old 

 hammer-kop, which, carrying a small water-lizard 

 between its mandibles, flew away unshot at. Suddenly, 

 however, the double report of de V 's gun reached 



