CHAPTEE VI. 
Tracking a rhinoceros — Zebra seen — I shoot an ‘ owl ^ for the pot— G-revy’s 
zebra — Curious moon effect — I shoot a spotted hy^na — Abundance of 
game — Exciting ride after a leopard — Attack of fever. 
My headman now said that we must send back to the 
coast for more food, as we should run short in a month’s 
time. So I reluctantly sent three camels and three men 
back with orders to return as soon as possible, and to take 
news as to where they should find us. I sent back all my 
skins and skulls to the care of a merchant in Berbera, as 
the latter were sure to get broken sooner or later on this 
uneven ground covered with stone. I parted with them, 
however, with a good deal of misgiving, wondering if I 
should ever see them and the camels again. 
Nothing came near the dead camels, and next morning 
natives reported that the lions had moved to the next 
village, and had killed a camel ; and later on in the day 
other natives appeared like vultures out of space, and 
reported that a lion had jumped over their zareba and 
carried off a big girl of nineteen. On the natives setting 
out in pursuit, the lion had let drop the lower half of the 
girl, which the natives had found, and made good his escape 
with the other half. After a cup of coffee I started off 
at 5.30 a.m. south-west. When we had gone about 
300 yards we came upon a large grayish snake with white 
belly (the African cobra). He required a great deal of 
killing. He raised himself bolt upright in a small bush, 
puffed out his neck, and ejected a copious white fluid at us. 
Shortly afterwards we came upon the fresh tracks of a 
