i6 
ELEPHANT-HUNTING IN EAST AFRICA 
CHAP. 
guide said the elephants were in the habit of drinking, and in 
the neighbourhood of which he felt confident they then were. 
We kept silence on the march on this day. Except for an 
odd Waller’s gazelle or two here and there, and occasionally 
a little giraffe spoor, the country now seemed gameless. We 
at length entered the dry bed of the watercourse, and after 
following it up for some distance came, to Papa’s intense 
excitement, to where elephants (a few only) had dug in the 
sand for water the night before. We camped not far off to 
leeward and kept perfectly quiet, after sunset putting our fires 
out and neither speaking nor stirring. It was hardly dark 
when we heard the elephants farther up stream, fortunately to 
windward. They were evidently drinking. 
I had, of course, great hopes of success now ; and next 
morning was ready, as soon as it was light enough, to follow 
the spoor. In this, however, poor old Papa failed, much to my 
astonishment. I had been told by Von Hohnel that Ndorobos 
were not good at spooring ; but could hardly believe but that he 
must have been mistaken. However, mine could not keep it in 
hard dry ground ; and after casting about all morning he was 
at length forced to confess that he was not able to spoor with 
certainty except after rain. The poor old fellow was so down¬ 
hearted, being much more disappointed than I myself, that I 
could not be put out with him, although he had led me all 
this dance and wasted so much of my time for nothing. At 
that time neither I nor my gun-bearers had had much ex¬ 
perience at spooring elephants, the ground was very hard with 
no long grass, and, our guide having failed us, I thought it 
was useless now thinking more of elephants this time; so 
next morning we marched back in the direction we had come 
from. How I wished for a couple of good South African 
natives to spoor for me ! I have never had bushmen with 
me, but some of the Tongas and Shanganes living in the 
game districts of South-Eastern Africa are good enough for 
me. Had I been able to follow these elephants in such easy 
