CHAP. VI.] GUIDE DECAMPS AND WE FIND ANOTHER. 167 



amongst, of learning their language and their customs, 

 and who have also every desire of extending then- 

 spheres of action ; yet a long time elapses between each 

 step that their stations advance, and when they do so 

 it invariably is under the strong influence of some 

 chief that they are even then led on. The traveller 

 who tries to dash at it has many difficulties indeed to 

 encounter. 



These scoundrel Damaras wanted to misdirect us, 

 and to send us eastwards instead of northwards, to 

 find out the Ovampo, but the women of the tribe let 

 out the secret to the wives of mj'^ Damaras, and the 

 wives of course told it to their husbands, who told it 

 to me, so that their plans failed. The taU guide took 

 great pains to explain to us how innocent he was of 

 all guUe, and that he would take us on to the Ovampo 

 and do everything we wanted, and also that it would 

 be very convenient if I paid the calf I had promised 

 him in advance, as he had an opportunity of sending 

 it home now, which he would not have again. I mis- 

 trusted my friend — I never did trust a Damara out 

 of my sight — but he teased me and I gave him the 

 calf. Timboo was quite won by his agreeable address, 

 and lent him liis horse -rug to slee^) upon. The rascal 

 of coiu'se sent away the calf, and decamped with the 

 rug the next night. Another savage took us on, and 

 we came to a little bit of a water-hole, then to another, 

 on the succeeding day, where there was a large werft, 

 and we fraternised strongly with the people of it. 

 They confirmed what we had heard, of there being 

 elej)hants a-head, and pointed out a number of coppice- 



