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valley, from here onward. We had now got pretty close 

 under the Mathews range, which towered up to a considerable 

 height across the valley on our right, and also ahead, where it 

 seemed to shut it in. Continuing on our way down, parallel 

 with the river, the following morning (30th August 1895), 

 after about three hours' marching we stopped for a short rest ; 

 and, shortly after proceeding again, we had arrived at a part of 

 the valley where the bottom consisted of a wide, damp flat, 

 covered with a tall and dense growth of reedy swamp grass, 

 with here and there patches of jungle and thorn-trees and an 

 occasional stagnant pool, while the river wound through all, 

 sometimes approaching the opposite hills, at others near those 

 on our side. I kept my eyes on this, as a likely harbour for 

 the game I was in quest of ; and, sure enough, on topping a 

 little rise which gave me a good view over it, a great black ear 

 caught my eye, among the tops of the thick brake, waving 

 gently with a sinuous kind of motion reminding one of the 

 lazy movement of the fin or tail of a fish lying sleepily poised 

 in the water. I at once halted my little party in a hollow 

 under the stony hills which enclose the valley, and the base of 

 which we had been skirting. Fortunately the wind was right. 

 Leaving the other men with the loads and donkeys, with 

 orders to keep absolutely still, I took my three gun-bearers 

 and two Ndorobo lads, and, making a circuit round to leeward, 

 crossed the river, struggled through the dense brake, and 

 reached the steep bare stony hill on the far side, close to 

 where the elephants had been. I say elephants, for, though 

 only one (or rather a bit of one) had been visible, I felt sure 

 there were more. It was no easy matter making our way 

 through this formidable cover. The height of the grass may 

 be inferred from the fact that, even from the coign of vantage 

 whence I scanned it, only an elephant's ear could be made 

 out ; while it was so dense as to be quite impassable except 

 by the paths made by elephants and rhinos, and even then 

 only with difficulty, as the heavy grass often drooped over the 



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