CHAPTER XXV 



Move my camp — En route to Abyssinian border — Halt at a Karia — Gung- 

 dya bitten by a snake — Rough and ready remedies — The patient 

 recovers — A deadly adder — I am regarded as a curiosity — An in- 

 voluntary exhibition — Bad water — The water difficulty — March 

 resumed — Shoot a wart-hog — The animal described — A permanent 

 camp — Good sport — Native elephant huntei-s — Their methods des- 

 cribed — Quotation from Sir Samuel Baker — Hamstriuging elephants 

 — A reno^vned Arab hunter — Advancing on his quarry — The bay 

 mare — Face to face — A tense moment — The hunter hunted — Clever 

 manoeuvring — The blow delivered — A handful of dust — The second 

 blow — Bleeding to death — A herd of giraffe — The Somali species 

 different from South African — I secure a fine old bull — The hunt 

 described — Another buU shot — The wild ass — Secure two as specimens 

 — A woman and child abandoned by Somalis — I act the good Samaritan 

 — Death of the mother — The infant on my hands — How to rear it ? — 

 The problem solved — Condensed milk and sago — Wonderful results 

 — The pet of the camp — Infant physical culture — The Somali method 

 — My leave draws to a close — Forced marches to the coast — Mal- 

 odorous trophies — Back to Bombay — I meet Sir Samuel Baker — 

 Interesting conversation — An enthusiastic sportsman. 



The horrible tragedy just related east such a gloom over 

 my men that I determined to move my camp next morning 

 to a well on the border of Abyssinia. Marching the whole 

 day along the old caravan route we arrived at a Karia — 

 the name of which I forget — and halted for the night. 



While the men were cutting down trees, etc., to form the 

 usual zareba, I strolled out with my gun, accompanied 

 by my Bhil orderly, Gungdya, to shoot some guinea-fowl 

 for the pot, a number of these birds being in the vicinity 

 of the camp. 



We were strolling along leisurely, when Gungdya 

 suddenly gave a scream, and said he had been bitten by a 

 snake. Looking on the ground I saw the snake — which 

 was about a foot long — gliding away into some bushes, 

 190 



