A school of chattering monkeys raced out on to 

 the blackened flat, and screamed shrilly with terror 

 as the hot earth and cinders burnt their feet. 



Porcupine, antbear, meerkat ! They are vague, so 

 vague that nothing is left but the shadow of their 

 passing ; but there is one other thing seen in a flash 

 as brief as the others, for a second or two only, but 

 never to be forgotten ! Out of the yellow grass, high 

 up in the waving tops, came sailing down on us the 

 swaying head and glittering eyes of a black mamba 

 swiftest, most vicious, most deadly of snakes. Francis 

 and I were not five yards apart and it passed between 

 us, giving a quick chilly beady look at each pitiless, 

 and hateful and one hiss as the slithering tongue shot 

 out : that was all, and it sailed past with strange 

 effortless movement. How much of the body was 

 on the ground propelling it, I cannot even guess ; 

 but we had to look upwards to see the head as the snake 

 passed between us. 



The scorching breath of the fire drove us before it 

 on to the baked ground, inches deep in ashes and glow- 

 ing cinders, where we kept marking time to ease our 

 blistering feet ; our hats were pulled down to screen 

 our necks as we stood with our backs to the coming 

 flames ; our flannel shirts were so hot that we kept shift- 

 ing our shoulders for relief. Jock, who had no screen 

 and whose feet had no protection, was in my arms ; 

 and we strove to shield ourselves from the furnace- 

 blast with the branches we had used to beat out the 

 fire round the big tree which was our main shelter. 



The heat was awful ! Live brands 

 293 



