51 
impossibility of the cart travelling down, or any otlier 
wheeled trap, and the country below didn't seem very 
likely to afford a passage, as there was evidently no road 
in these parts ; and a troop of huge baboons, which I now 
saw for the first time, kept shrieking at us, as they hopped 
about the rocks, as much as to say, ^ ' No road for a cart 
about here!" but I still hoped to find another pass less 
impracticable, and leaving Dubois to descend the mountain 
on his search for bearers, I hastened back, and reached the 
camp just before dark, and reported the result of my 
exploration. 
July 1st. Being quite out of meat, Woodroffe and I 
climbed about the hills round the camp in the hope of 
getting a buck of some kind, but without success; and 
next day I started with two or three Caffres to spend the 
night near the pass I had been to with Dubois, on the 
chance of finding better sport in that locality, and also 
thinking I might, perhaps, meet Dubois who, we thought, 
ought soon to be returning. Hunted all the evening and 
early morning, but got nothing, and didn't even have a 
shot. Dubois not turning up, I returned to camp in the 
afternoon, and we dined again on rice and dried vegetables. 
Next day we managed to get a small bit of mutton from a 
Dutchman, who had brought his family and cattle into this 
warm spot for the winter. Saw some koodoo to-day, but 
could not get a shot. We are getting very impatient to be 
moving on, but still no tidings of Dubois, and we began to 
wonder what had become of him. 
July 6th. Sunday. Ten days now since we arrived at 
this camp, and, therefore, ten days wasted. One of the 
weakly oxen got stuck in the mud yesterday evening by 
the water, and died this morning from the chill. Old 
^' Slangey" had a stiff neck, and declared he was very ill; 
gave him a good dose of Epsom salts and cured him. The 
next day we heard from some passing Caffres the 
