212 THROUGH MAS AIL AND TO THE BORDERS OF KIKUYU 



masses of cloud ; it rained continuously, and in spite of our 

 thick clothes we were freezing at a temperature of +21° 

 Centigrade. 



We turned this pause to account by sending for the goods 

 left behind at Taveta, and tried to pass the time ourselves in 

 hunting, but with little result, except that we got to know the 

 hilly districts on the east somewhat better. We found that these 

 districts were intersected by ravines running in a southerly and 

 south-westerly direction and containing water, but they were 

 so overgrown with rushes that it was impossible for us to make 

 out whether the water in them was flowing or stagnant. 



Meanwhile two more donkeys had succumbed to the hard- 

 ships they had had to endure, so we left behind a few coils of 

 iron wire, and thus lightened proceeded on our way on the 

 19th. After several hours' wandering over dry, grassy steppes 

 a beautiful group of dark green trees, rising far above any 

 others, was pointed out to us as our next halting-place. These 

 trees grew at a sharp bend of the Useri stream, and enclosed a 

 charming spot simply made for a camp, as the men could rest 

 in the shade and the animals disport themselves in the open 

 grass sward in the middle. The vegetation on every side was 

 most luxuriant, and the trees sheltered us from the chill south- 

 west wind which continued to blow without intermission. 



It was here that six years ago some traders took a bloody 

 revenge for some little offence committed against them by the 

 natives. I was surprised, therefore, at the readiness with 

 which both men and women came to the camp for food, but 

 there was a certain uneasiness about their bearing towards us. 

 They did not beg, they would not enter the inner camp, and 

 they kept well away from our tent. They took very little 

 notice of us Europeans, and drew back when we tried to 

 approach them with our most reassuring manner. If, as of 

 course often happened in such a big caravan, a shot was 



