124 AN UNKNOWN ANIMAL ON THE UASINGISHU 
long before there was any settlement np there. We had been 
camped on the edge of the Escarpment near the Mataye and 
were marching towards the Sirgoit Eock when we saw the 
beast. There was a thick mist, and my cousin and I were 
walking on ahead of the safari with one boy when, just as we 
drew near to the slopes of the hill, the mist cleared away 
suddenly and my cousin called out ‘ What is that ? ’ Looking 
in the direction to which he pointed I saw a large animal 
sitting up on its haunches not more than 80 yards away. Its 
attitude was just that of a bear at the ‘ Zoo ’ asking for buns, and 
I should say it must have been nearly 5 feet high. It is ex- 
tremely hard to estimate height in a case of this kind ; but it 
seemed to both of us that it was very nearly, if not quite, as 
tall as we were. Before we had time to do anything it dropped 
forward and shambled away towards the Sirgoit with what my 
cousin always describes as a sort of sideways canter. The 
grass had all been burnt off some weeks earlier and so the 
animal was clearly visible. 
I snatched my rifle and took a snapshot at it as it was dis- 
appearing among the rocks, and, though I missed it, it stopped 
and turned its head round to look at us. It is in this position 
that I see it most clearly in my mind’s eye. In size it was, I 
should say, larger than the bear that lives in the pit at the ‘ Zoo ’ 
and it was quite as heavily built. The fore quarters were very 
thickly furred, as were all four legs, but the hind quarters were 
comparatively speaking smooth or bare. This distinction was 
very definite indeed and was the first thing that struck us both. 
The head was long and pointed and exactly like that of a bear, 
as indeed was the whole animal. I have not a very clear 
recollection of the ears beyond the fact that they were small, 
and the tail, if any, was very small and practically unnoticeable. 
The colour was dark and left us both with the impression that 
it was more or less of a brindle, like a wildebeeste, but this 
may have been the effect of light. 
The mist had entirely lifted and the beast stood out quite 
plainly against the rocks. Unfortunately I had no second 
cartridge ready, and it had vanished before I could get another 
shot. Owing to the extreme hardness and dryness of the soil 
at the time and the number of stones there was no definite 
