10 ADVENTURES IN SOUTH IFRICA. 



arose to consume coffee and rhinoceros. Having break- 

 fasted, I started with a party of the natives to search 

 for elephants in a southerly direction. We held along 

 the gravelly bed of a periodical river, in which were 

 abundance of holes excavated by the elephants in quest 

 of water. Here the spoor of rhinoceros wag extremely 

 plentiful, and in every hole where they had drunk the 

 print of the horn was visible. We soon found the spoor 

 of an old bull elephant, which led us into a dense for- 

 est, where the ground was particularly unfavorable for 

 spooring ; we, however, thridded it out for a considera- 

 ble distance, when it joined the spoor of other bulls. 

 The natives now requested me to halt, while men went 

 off in different directions to reconnoiter. 



In the mean time a tremendous conflagration was 

 roaring and crackling close to windward of us. It was 

 caused by the Bakalahari burning the old dry grass 

 to enable the young to spring up with greater facility, 

 whereby they retained the game in their dominions. The 

 fire stretched away for many miles on either side of us, 

 darkening the forests far to leeward with a dense and 

 impenetrable canopy of smoke. Here we remained for 

 about half an hour, when one of the men returned, re- 

 portmg that he had discovered elephants. This I could 

 scarcely credit, for I fancied that the extensive fire 

 which raged so fearfully must have driven, not only 

 elephants, but every living creature out of the district. 

 The native, however, pointed to his eye, repeating th 

 word "Klow," and signed to me to follow him. My 

 guide led me about a mUe through dense forest, when 

 we reached a little well- wooded hill, to whcse summit 

 we ascended, whence a view might have been obtain- 

 ed of the surrounding country, had not volumes of 

 smoke obscured the scenery far and wide, as though 



