An African Shooting Trip 



In the fall of 1893, Dr. A. Donaldson 

 Smith, now the well-known African explorer, 

 and I found ourselves in London, with but 

 three days in which to make ready for the 

 African shooting trip we had planned for the 

 following winter. Most of the time during 

 these three days was spent in buying big rifles 

 for ourselves, guns for arming our native fol- 

 lowers, tents, provisions, water-filters, water- 

 bottles, and large metal barrels for water 

 transportation. These last proved very use- 

 ful in crossing the waterless plains. By hard 

 work and rigid economy of time the most 

 necessary things were procured, and on Octo- 

 ber 13 we were steaming down the Thames in 

 the P. & O. boat Oceana, bound for Aden, in 

 company with an Englishman, H. K., who was 

 to make the expedition with us. The P. &. O. 

 boats carry no explosives, and so, before 

 reaching England, we had been obliged to 

 order cartridges for the heavy rifles we in- 



78 



