16 
THE THOWA RIVER 
about eighty yards across and about two or three feet deep, 
and should provide water for, certainly, two months after the 
cessation of rains. 
Up to this point we had seen no game, though Spoor of 
elephant, giraffe, oryx, and buffalo had been plentiful. A herd 
of five giraffes, delightfully unconscious of the camp, came 
down in the evening to drink at this pool. From this day 
onwards we were continually amongst game, though the fact 
was not so obvious in the bush country as on the open plain. 
On leaving this camp we soon emerged from the well-watered 
region and struck into a scrub — thick, thorny, and fearfully dry. 
Twelve miles of this were traversed before we could reach the 
river Thowa. We crossed it immediately, the breadth here 
being fifty yards, and encamped. This camp I have called the 
Thowa River Camp, as I could find no name for the locality. 
To the south lay an open alluvial plain, on which were to be 
seen eland, oryx, zebra, and Peter’s gazelle. 
Beyond this point the general aspect of the country under- 
went a considerable change. The bush became more open, 
except for the forest fringe on either side of the river. These 
gigantic acacias and dom palms (Hyphcene thebaica) still held 
sway, protecting an entangled undergrowth, the home of count- 
less elephants. These beasts, it appears, shelter here in the 
heat of the day, browsing off the green vegetation, and only at 
night come out to wander afield. On one occasion only did 
I see an elephant in the open scrub country, but all day long 
they were to be heard within the fringe of forest. From the 
sounds themselves and the devastated condition of these same 
forests, I should say there must have been hundreds. Grass 
became very scanty giving place to large open spaces (vide 
photo) or mud-pans. In some places this mud was 
smooth and firm with a surface like asphalt, in others sun- 
cracked. Oryx, eland, lesser kudu, and gerenuk became 
quite numerous, and in the early morning were to be seen 
standing about on these open places. 
Henceforward we followed the river for three days, at times 
pushing our way through the forest belt, at others making 
good pace over the mud-pans. At Watolo, where there is a 
large pool, the river divides, one arm running northwards and 
