198 TWO DIANAS IN SOMALILAND 
pleased. So I will just state that this one sang. I 
need not say how. It is rude to look a gift horse in 
the mouth, and this was a free entertainment. The 
warbler continued his romance and psean in various 
tones for a long time when, suddenly, at a more screech- 
ing note than usual, every man left the line and galloped 
frantically about the sand, never knocking into each 
other, throwing spears with all their force here, there, 
and everywhere, to catch them up again as the ponies 
dashed past. The pace grew hotter, and presently 
each rider was enveloped in a cloud of dust, and we 
could only see the energetic frantic forms through a 
maze of sand. It reached us and set us coughing. 
The riders seemed almost to lift the ponies by the grip 
of the knees and the balance seemed perfect, and the 
greatest surprise was that something other than the 
ground was not jabbed by the flying spears. Some 
good throwers could attain a distance of about seventy 
to eighty yards. 
They all careered about like possessed creatures in 
a turmoil of tossed-up sand and wild excitement, 
when, at a signal may be, but I saw none, back the 
whole lot raced, straight like an arrow from a bow, 
so swiftly, I thought we should be ridden over. But 
of course we had to sit tight, and pretend we were not 
in fear and trembling about the issue of so furious a 
charge. The poor ponies were reined in at our very 
feet so jerkily and cruelly that the blood started 
from the overstrained corners of their mouths. Then, 
crowding around us, jostling and pushing each other, 
the animals gasped and panted their hearts out. I 
