426 



THROUGH JUNGLE AND DESERT 



CHAP. 



prices paid for the ivory were ridiculously low. As 

 soon as the Mortunye found that the traders wished 

 ivory, they set out in parties to kill elephants. 

 According to the reports of these Zanzibari, the 

 Mortunye seemed to be very clever hunters, and were 

 so likely to kill elephants, that the Arab traders were 

 accustomed to follow the hunters to get the tusks as 

 fast as the beasts were slain. Six men hunt together, 

 and use spears. The traders reported that donkeys 

 were very cheap in Turcana. 



Now that George had purchased donkeys in Ukam- 

 bani, another difficulty presented itself — I had no sad- 

 dles for them. Fortunately we had the skins of about 

 forty zebras, which, however, were so stiff and hard 

 that it appeared impossible to soften them sufficiently 

 to make them into comfortable saddles. However, I 

 set the men to work at them, and after two weeks' 

 pounding with stones and rubbing with sticks, they 

 managed to make the refractory hides into panniers of 

 the roughest possible type. 



Just before Lieutenant von Hohnel started for the 

 coast, a party of thirty Zanzibari had come from Mom- 

 basa, who, after hearing the tales of my men about 

 the Rendile, and the statement that the Rendile built 

 their zeribas of ivory, had set out in that direction 

 accompanied by a party of forty Wakamba hunters. 

 They fell in with the Rendile one day's journey to 

 the eastward of Chanler Falls. Immediately upon 

 sighting the caravan, the Rendile threatened to kill 

 them, and were only prevented and pacified by receiv- 

 ing a large present from the Zanzibari. The Rendile 

 refused to trade with them, unless the heaviest sort 



