132 ELEPHANT-HUNTING IN EAST AFRICA chap. 



herds of the smaller zebra, numerous waterbucks, and many 

 rhinos. I also saw a troop of Coke's hartebeeste, and in the 

 larger pools were hippos. 



On the way we fell in with a raiding party of some two 

 hundred young warriors from Embe, on a kidnapping expedi- 

 tion, bound for Thaka (a district a little higher up the Tana). 

 Their idea of " the war-path " is to carry off any women and 

 children they may be able to surprise in outlying " shambas." 

 They were very civil and respectful to us, and went about their 

 business when I told them we preferred having nothing to do 

 with them under the circumstances. 



Farther on the countr}' became gradually more bushy as 

 we got nearer the river, till the thick Tana scrub was reached. 



While Dr. Kolb went on to shoot hippos, I halted where I 

 had seen a little elephant spoor. I found a single bull, which 

 I killed. He was a solitary wanderer of the "herd -bull" 

 type : his tusks — long and handsome, but thin — weighed 

 49 lbs. and 44 lbs. respectively, one being considerably 

 thicker at the base than its fellow. Probably he had been 

 ousted by a rival from the harem, and was sulking by himself 

 He was in poor condition and had two sores on his back. I 

 was very pleased with this stroke of good luck, after so long an 

 interval, and wrote in my diary : " This was a glorious bit of 

 exciting success. Nothing in the world can touch the glow of 

 satisfaction on flooring a fine elephant." 



On reaching the river I found the doctor enjoying himself 

 vastly among the hippos. He had been combining sport with 

 scientific research, and, on coming across to see me, produced 

 from his pocket a little red hippopotamus he had just acquired, 

 about the size of a guinea-pig, in which he was deeply interested. 



As I could find no signs of any more elephants, and had 

 made up my mind to visit the coast, sell what ivory I had, and 

 reorganise my caravan for another expedition, I returned to 

 Laiju to make my arrangements. I had all my goods trans- 

 ported back to the outside kraals of Ukambani, across the 



