94 VOCAL TELEGRAPH. 



saw a few goats feeding, and could plainly see a little 

 Kaffir boy sitting beside them : the transparency of the 

 air in these latitudes almost does away with the effect of 

 distance. " May-na-bo!" then sang Matuan, resting very 

 long on the may, in a singing sort of way ; and, without 

 any apparent exertion, a kind of shout from the boy came 

 thrilling through the air, like the voice of a distant bird. 

 " Ou vel arpe umseke ?" sung Matuan. " Empeshear kona," 

 thrilled the boy. Matuan, giving a grunt of approval, 

 moved on. This I must translate to make intelligible : 

 the maynabo was to call the attention of the boy, a kind 

 of " Holloa ! " Ou vel arpe umseke ? meaning, Where are 

 the reitboks gone ? Empeshear, indicating that they were 

 over on the other side. 



I have been frequently astonished at hearing the ease 

 with which two Kaffirs will carry on a conversation when 

 separated by distances that would be considered by us as 

 entirely to interrupt verbal communication. This con- 

 versation is accomplished by the tone and modulations of 

 the voice, as also the distinct divisions in the Kaffirs' 

 language. 



We walked on for nearly two miles under a burning 

 sun. The heat was intense, and my gun-barrels became 

 so hot that it was with difficulty I could hold the gun. 

 The annoyance from numerous flies and insects, whose 

 bite was severe, added to the natural irritation that one 

 sometimes feels on a hot day. Matuan soon showed me 

 a long ravine, full of rushes and reeds, that looked a most 

 likely place for a buck. We sat down beside a little 

 rippling stream, while we refreshed ourselves with a 



