214 THROUGH MASAILAND TO THE BORDERS OF KIKUYU 



and a glance was enough to show us that the eastern side 

 must be less fruitful than the more favoured southern districts. 

 Here, as there, is a girdle of primaeval forest, but there are 

 much fewer grassy openings, and only two deep ravines break 

 the monotony of the barren or grass-clad ridges above the 

 wood. The slopes seem completely covered with a thick layer 

 of ashes, into which all the water sinks, not reappearing until 

 the plain is reached. 



The Wajagga living on the east side of Kilimanjaro culti- 

 vate two kinds of beans, with eieusine, sweet potatoes, and 

 tobacco, but neither maize nor sugar-cane. The mountain 

 pastures cannot support their cattle, which are most of them 

 taken to graze in the grassy plains below. Almost every day 

 one sees a long procession of men and animals wending their 

 way down to the steppes, and three hours later returning, the 

 men carrying heavy loads of grass on their heads. 



We had plenty of time for hunting in our two days' stay 

 here, and as usual the Count and I went in opposite directions 

 so as to secure a larger extent of ground. But we neither of 

 us got much ; the game was very shy, and consisted chiefly of 

 waterbucks, hartebeests, and zebras. The first day, Count 

 Teleki brought home a hartebeest which he had killed by a 

 lucky shot at a distance of 300 paces. I had a zebra hunt, 

 during which I had an encounter with a rhinoceros. Zebras 

 are very inquisitive, and often let the hunter approach in the 

 open to within 200 or 300 paces of them, and on this occasion 

 a beautiful plump female paid for her curiosity with her life. 

 We were just going to cut our victim up when two rhinoceroses 

 appeared in the distance. They had evidently been disturbed 

 in a nap by our firing, and now trotted angrily into the open. 

 Though more than 400 paces off they swerved aside when they 

 saw us and then dashed upon us with the speed of racehorses. 

 Of course, as usual, my black companions took to their heels, 



