WE SUCCEED IN GETTING A FIRE 



153 



ing and crying, the tears pouring in streams down tlieir livid 

 clieeks, tliey meclianically followed the path like children, 

 splashing painfully along through the floods of water. Two 

 men went quite out of their minds, flung down their loads, and 

 rushed wildly to and fro in the bush. We managed to catch 

 one of them and restore him to reason, but the other we only 

 found again as a skeleton two months later. 



After one hour's march our caravan presented a woe- 

 begone appearance such as almost bafiles description. The 

 men were all either in utter despair or perfectly indifferent, 

 and presently when we came to a foaming brook which we had 

 to cross, the finishing touch was put to their woes. The water 

 was quite shallow though the current was strong, but, as if in 

 a dream, the miserable fellows plunged into it, and the next 

 minute the loads were all tossing and bobbing about in the 

 brown foaming waters. Deaf to all our exhortations and 

 threats, the porters allowed themselves to be swept along 

 like logs of wood, and I really think if we ourselves and the 

 Somal, who had kept their nerve throughout, had not taken 

 the men one by one by the hand and led them through the 

 brook, we should have lost one-third of our caravan. 



Of course it was absolutely necessary to halt after this. 

 Our first care was to make a good fire that the poor shivering 

 fellows might get warm. Thanks to some patent lighting- 

 apparatus charged with petroleum, which we had almost for- 

 gotten we had with us, we got a good blaze, after our ex- 

 perienced Mhogo Mtschungu had tried all the usual means in 

 vain. Our proceedings were watched by our men with gaping 

 mouths and eager anxiety, and they crowded closely together 

 round the smoking pile beneath our umbrellas. 



Fortunately the rain ceased at eleven o'clock, and at noon 

 the sun for the first time broke through the clouds, and only the 

 rushino- stream reminded us of the piteous scenes enacted here 



