290 



THROUGH JUNGLE AND DESERT chap. 



" My people," he exclaimed excitedly ; " Samburu, 

 Berkenedji." (Two names for the same people.) 



" But I thought your people were poor, and had 

 no camels." 



" Yes ; that is true. Being poor, and not possessed 

 of any flocks, many of my people hover about the out- 

 skirts of the Rendile camp, and support life by plun- 

 dering from the Rendile either camels, sheep, goats, 

 or cattle. That is why they are called ' dthombon,' 

 which means in the Rendile language, ' robbers.' " 



The presence of these tracks convinced me that the 

 Rendile could not be far away. The tracks were made 

 that morning just before sunrise, and if these dthom- 

 bon had travelled three or four days from the Rendile, 

 they would have rested, and feasted upon the camels 

 they had captured. But they were up with the dawn, 

 and pushing quickly onward; which argued that they 

 had just captured the camels, and that the Rendile 

 were certainly near at hand. This was a joyful thought. 

 I at once despatched two men back to Seran with a 

 note for Lieutenant von Hohnel, informing him of 

 our discovery, and telling him to make the caravan 

 ready to march in our direction, as soon as I should 

 have ascertained the whereabouts of the Rendile and 

 sent him word. 



The effect of the sight of these camel tracks upon 

 the different members of my small force was not the 

 same. The two Somali I had taken with me (Karscho 

 and Achmet Dualla) jabbered with excitement, and 

 endeavoured to urge me to turn aside, go after the 

 dthombon, and capture the camels. " God has deliv- 

 ered them into our hands," they said. " The Rendile 



