38o ELEPHANT-HUNTING IN EAST AFRICA ch. xvi 



from the vultures. This expedient for protecting game from 

 birds I have not seen recommended. Others may have adopted 

 it, though I have not come across any mention of it myself I 

 found out the dodge some twenty years ago, in South Africa, 

 and have never known it fail if properly carried out, adapting 

 it to the situation by such various devices for attaching the flag 

 as circumstances may dictate. 



We were now close to the rugged black lava hills, already 

 described as characterising the country at the southern end of 

 the lake, where I knew game to be scarce ; and glad was I 

 that the men had been having a good time with meat galore, 

 so as to have strength in reserve for the hard work ahead. 

 Our last comfortable camp was on the charming little stream 

 which comes from Mount Kulale. How beautiful is running 

 water in this arid land ; and how sweet it tastes after the nasty 

 stuff of bitter old Bassu ! Thence it took us a week's hard toil 

 to get through the terrible country already described — country 

 which a Zulu would say (and truly) had been " badly hurt." 

 As before, terrific gales made things unpleasant for us, and the 

 work harder : it being sometimes hardly possible to stand, and 

 out of the question to attempt to pitch a tent or use a table, 

 while nothing was safe without stones on it. But one may get, 

 in a measure, hardened to almost anything ; and I came to 

 take less notice of the discomforts the unceasing wind entailed 

 than formerly. By steady plodding we got through all the 

 difficulties without mishap. Of meat we got none ; I could 

 not even get a chance at one of the Grant's gazelle, a few of 

 which are to be found even there. 



It is perplexing, at first sight, why these buck, which can 

 hardly ever see a human being, should be much wilder than 

 those in inhabited parts. Being unaccustomed to man certainly 

 produces no shocking tameness here. The explanation seems 

 to be, that where there are natives who are practically unable 

 to harm them, they get used to seeing people about ; whereas 

 these, having an in-bred fear of man, the inheritance of ages. 



