NZOIA PLATEAU AND ITS TRIBES 227 



mosquitoes and very little fever. Horses and mules do 

 well, as there is no tsetse, but one thing must be had in 

 mind in planning such exploration. During April, May, 

 and June there is a belt of country north of the Nzoia 

 where sefari is impossible, owing to the numbers of the 

 gadfly. Mules and donkeys cannot live, but actually bleed 

 to death, and porters cannot march. These terrible pests, 

 strangely enough, do not cross to the southern bank of the 

 river in any considerable number, and south of the river 

 these months and March are the very best hunting months 

 in all the year. The grass is then short, the country a 

 beautiful fresh green. Lions can be ridden round the rock 

 and to the southwest of it, and can be hunted in the bushy 

 lands bordering the river where they are very numerous; 

 but once the grass makes head it is dangerous work following 

 them there. 



I know more about such hunting now than I did when 

 I first followed them on foot and alone, six months ago. 

 And to follow up bands of lions when more than one of 

 their number has been wounded in long grass is taking a 

 risk, a very grave risk. 



If this is done two guns should work together. Only a few 

 months ago H. and a sportsman with him missed an accident 

 by a hair's breadth. The grass was still short, not up to 

 the knee. They had wounded a lioness badly and then, 

 thinking they couldn't fail to see her in time to avoid all 

 danger, walked side by side slowly through the little patch 

 of sparse cover she had slunk into. They heard her growl 

 but could not locate the sound. Do what they would, 

 they could see nothing. There are little ant heaps all 

 scattered through the grass hereabouts, the size and colour 

 of a big brown overbaked loaf. H.'s man shot quickly 

 twice, and H. saw the dust puff up from an ant hill a few 

 feet away. Then there was a yellow rush, and from some- 

 where, almost under their feet, the lioness was on them, 



