298 IN THE LAND OF THE BORA. 



and often I have failed to conjecture what animal 

 it was whose footsteps passed so close to our 

 canvas home. 



A third event marked that day, or rather the 

 night following, and this was a terrific scirocco 

 gale, which banished sleep and lasted till noon or 

 later, considerably damaging our temporary outer 

 fly. Fortunately, the look of the sky warned me 

 to lose no time making all snug again before a 

 terrific thunderstorm burst over our heads. It 

 began with hail, and ended with three hours' heavy 

 rain. In the middle of this we were surprised by 

 a visitor, whom I at first put down as a rather 

 disreputable tramp, till what I took at first for an 

 ice-axe undeceived me. It turned out to be a 

 botanical digging-tool, and the owner a Berlin 

 botanist, whom the storm had surprised collecting 

 in the Velez. To make matters worse, he had 

 lost his way in the woods, and altogether a more 

 thoroughly saturated and bedraggled individual I 

 do not recollect ever having seen. He must 

 indeed have been glad to see the smoke from 

 our kitchen. After drying him somewhat at our 

 fire, and warming him with brandy and hot tea, 

 I lent him an old shooting-coat, and he con- 

 tinued his walk to Nevesinje, where his wife 

 was anxiously expecting him. He often came 

 to see us subsequently, and proved an amusing 

 companion and a capital climber. The very 



