MOMBASSA TO LION LAND 15 



railroad, and push far afield.* One rule it is always 

 well to observe in planning a sefari be sure and engage 

 many more porters than you have loads; men fall sick, 

 occasionally, a few desert, and at the last something is 

 sure to happen which calls for extra porterage. My 

 observance of this rule stood me in good stead on this 

 occasion. When the ox wagons were piled high with all 

 the teams could draw, we found that there were seven 

 loads left over. These must have been left behind, if my 

 men could not shoulder them. Next, as I stood on the 

 platform, a note was handed to me from M. A. C. Hoey, 

 a professional hunter I had engaged for this trip, as I wished 

 to ride lions, saying, that as he knew I had plenty of porters, 

 and he had not been able to hire any at the station, he 

 hoped I could bring his personal belongings along. That 

 meant nine loads more. Here, then, were sixteen 

 extra loads unexpectedly cast on me. Things seemed to 

 go wrong this morning, for two of my men had sickened 

 in the night, as natives often do (small blame to them, 

 poor fellows, shut up in iron trucks for so many hours), and 

 for a time it looked as if some necessary things must, after 

 all, remain behind till I could send for them. But I called 

 the men together and laid the case before them, asking 

 them to help me out, and so they did right manfully. 



I am not a little proud of a that first breakfastless 

 march in bitter cold out of Londiani, with men who had 

 had no food for thirty-eight hours, and who cheerfully, 

 in spite of that, carried, some of them, almost one hundred 

 pounds, to please me, and save delaying the sefari. Would 

 any other men but these good natured, willing, black folk 

 do it? Certainly neither English nor American soldiers 

 would or could. 



*I make no mention here of personal supplies tents, clothes, ammunition, food delicacies, wines, 

 whiskey (we carried no alcohol whatever for ourselves) and selected provisions for the whole trip 

 should be bought and boxed in London. The boxes must not weigh more than fifty-five pounds. 

 The Army and Navy Co-operative Company do this work admirably. Full details of such pro- 

 visioning I give elsewhere. 



