184 TWO DIANAS IN SOMALILAND 
that no mischief ever comes from the poison being 
sucked into the system via the mouth. Not even the 
virulent poison of the rattler harms in this way. ’ When 
I got into camp I soaked my finger in ammonia, and 
so got off excellently well. 
I bestrode my weary steed again, asking no more of 
it than a slow walk, and followed on the traces of 
Clarence and the aoul. I shouted after a while and 
he replied. I came on him shortly sitting by the dead 
aoul, resting between moments of butchery. I hadn’t 
heard a shot, but I must have been too dazed. We 
were a long way from camp, and the difficulty con- 
fronted us of packing so large a buck back. We could 
only do it conveniently, as I did not want to walk, 
minus the head and feet. The horns were good, but 
the head as a trophy was ruined by the way its neck 
was cut. The system of 4 4 hallal ” doesn’t seem to 
allow of ordinary throat-cutting, far down, where the 
gash does not show. The gash must run from ear to ear, 
consequently it ruins a trophy for setting up purposes. 
Laden, we hied us back to what Nathaniel Gubbins 
would call 44 the home-sweet,” and were welcomed with 
glowing fires, on which the aoul, in parts, was immedi- 
ately frizzling. The men gorged incontinently, as 
Cecily came in shortly after us with an oryx. These 
two beasts broke the run of bad luck, and afterwards, 
for a few days, we could not miss a shot. Our bullets 
seemed charmed. So did the men. They ate semi- 
raw meat in such large quantities I wondered they 
didn’t get mange and lose their hair. There is no 
satisfying a Somali with meat. He cannot have 
