TWO DIANAS IN SOMALILAND 175 



gnawed his food. We found, too, at a short distance a 

 piece of dropped flesh, and either side of it the pugs 

 holding on and quiescent. 



Our men, as a rule, wore tremendously heavy 

 sandals, which turned up at the front like the prow 

 of a ship, but when stalking the hunters discarded 

 these and were barefooted. For stalking some game 

 the lightest of foot wear is essential, and though, as a 

 rule, I wore nothing but boots, I found a pair of 

 moccasins very handy on occasions ; they are too hot, 

 though, for wear in such a country, and the knowing 

 and learned shikari provides himself with cotton shoes. 

 The thorns are too insistent to make any light foot- 

 wear pleasurable to me, but I have gone the length of 

 taking off my boots and running in stocking feet when 

 a particularly alert koodoo needed an exceptionally 

 careful stalk, but it was a painful business, even if 

 necessary, and I don't advocate it. 



Two exquisite lesser koodoo does crossed our front 

 going like the wind, and we heard a distant bark. 

 Otherwise the jungle slept in the heat of the sun. Our 

 ponies drooped their heads as the fierce rays smote 

 them between the eyes. Waves of heat seemed to come 

 rising and rising as the hoofs churned up the sand. 



We dismounted presently, and two of the hunters 

 bestrode the ponies and fell behind. Fresh lion spoor 

 was now crossing the old trail, and we decided to 

 follow it up. We came on some very dense mimosa and 

 khansa, and in this zareba the pugs vanished. We 

 encircled the whole place. There were no other 

 prints. Our quarry was run to earth. Cecily fired 



