XIX HK/WS OF liOIIOR 205 



bowed till he touched the ground, and then again, as he 

 opened it. .\ft(;r he had read it, I apparently went up 

 considerahly in his estimation, and no difficult)- was made 

 in finding me a guide to continue my journey at once. 



We pitched camp close to the rocky head of the 

 Betket Nullah, a little tributary of the Abbai. Just as I 

 had finished lunch, my men reported reedbuck close by. I 

 pulled on my boots and had just left camp when a thunder- 

 storm broke, wetting my khaki clothing through in a few 

 minutes. Nearly all the grass had just been burned, and 

 there was no cover, so, when I reached the reedbuck, I 

 tried the old dodge of slowly walking round the beast in 

 a narrowing circle ; but he was much too wide-awake to 

 be taken in by such a simple trick, and I had to try a long 

 shot, which missed him clean. I then discovered a 

 gentle sloping valley, where the new grass had just 

 begun to show, dotted with bohor in every direction. 

 At one time over thirty were in view, and I decided 

 to try for four, feeding on ground which looked 

 fairly easy of approach. On getting up to them I 

 wounded one badly, which Omer ran down. Leaving 

 the men to skin it, I started after another herd, when 

 suddenly a fine old buck came dashing through some 

 long grass by the stream straight towards me. It 

 apparently saw me, but only slackened its pace, and 

 turned a little to one side. I stood quite still, till it was 

 almost past me, when I fired, the bullet tearing a great 

 hole just over its heart. To my surprise it walked on 

 into a patch of reeds, as if nothing was wrong. We 

 afterwards found it lying down, and after a short chase 

 secured it. 



