Sporting Trips of a Subaltern 



conversation. " I lib be sick too much, sir " too 

 is used for very. 



On my way down river I stayed a day at 

 Jebba island. There was a large garrison there 

 now, but through sickness and stress of work not 

 much shooting had been attempted ; in fact, it 

 was the very general opinion that there was little 

 or nothing to be got in the vicinity. I, however, 

 remembered my water-buck that I had viewed 

 on the right bank during my last visit, and at 

 about 2.30 p.m. crossed over in a canoe to pay 

 my respects to him. I was accompanied by Lieu- 

 tenant Porter, now Brevet-Major Porter, D.S.O., 

 Nineteenth Hussars. We climbed a big steep bit 

 of hill and came to a fairly level stretch which led 

 up to the base of the higher slopes beyond. Here 

 we paused a bit to look back at the view, one 

 of the finest in Nigeria, not, be it mentioned, a 

 country of fine views. Below us was Jebba 

 island ; slightly further up stream a peculiar rock, 

 known to the natives as the Ju-ju rock, reared 

 itself perpendicularly out of the river ; all round, 

 as far as the eye could reach, lay a slightly un- 

 dulating bush-covered country alternating with 

 stony ridges, many of them of the well-known 

 African table-topped shape. What beauty there 

 was in the scene, however, centred principally on 

 the mighty river itself, running darkly in places 

 under steep banks, foaming round the Ju-ju rock, 



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