ACROSS THE MAU ESCARPMENT 65 



northward, and in the broad bottom of the valley of the 

 Kerio-Elgao country, only ten miles to the right, buffalo 

 are plentiful, but can only be successfully hunted when the 

 grass is quite short. The Elgao absolutely refuse to go 

 after them while it is long. And the Cherangang forests 

 are so full of staked game pits, that no man, not even an 

 N'dorobo is safe among them, unless at the same time of 

 year (January to June). 



Between the plateau you stand on and this last range, 

 there opens the deep gorge in which the Nzoia River has 

 one of its chief sources. Here, too, the elephant sometimes 

 makes a halt, it is so near home, and the rocky sides of 

 the valley shelter many a leopard. As the fine stream 

 leaves its rough cradle, and winds among the rich lands 

 farther north, its banks grow marshy in places, and num- 

 berless sedgy hollows drain down to it from the uplands. 

 In these or near them is the chosen retreat of the finest 

 water buck in East Africa (Sing Sing). My friend secured, 

 thirty miles farther down the river, the record head for the 

 Protectorate (33 inches long by 32, spread, tip to tip 

 such a spread is quite unusual in East Africa). 



About twenty-five miles from the rock, the Nzoia bends 

 back to the southwest, sweeping round the slopes of Elgon_ 

 In the flat, reedy prairies on its margin, and only there, a 

 fine antelope is found in great abundance kobus kob.. 

 Be merciful to him, good brother sportsman. He is 

 easiest of all Nzoia's wild company to kill. Very hand- 

 some he is, and very poor meat when killed. So, though 

 by an oversight in the game laws, you may shoot ten, 

 hunt up zebra again, they are much larger, and the men 

 think them better eating, and be content with one or at most 

 two pair of the strong, gracefully curving horns. 



There are hippo everywhere on this lower part of Nzoia, 

 and a very few rhino. But, leaving these out of count, 

 for river hippo are always small, and rhino horns in this 



