X 
EXCURSIONS FROM EL BOGOI 
227 
now. Juma, whom I had sent off the day before in the opposite 
direction to that in which I had been lately hunting—that is, to 
the southward in the district of the upper Seya—returned, 
bringing with him two Ndorobo youths from that part. They 
had nothing to impart, though, as they said there had been no 
elephants in their neighbourhood since Lesiat drove out the 
big herd just after my arrival. Juma, however, declared that he 
had seen fresh spoor on his way back, in a part where I had 
hunted formerly. Taking all things into consideration, I 
decided to go that way first, leaving the mountains till I had 
definite news as to what part of the range I should be likely 
to find in. 
But before starting next morning I gave Lesiat as much 
beans as his wife could carry, the greater part of a big loaf 
of tobacco (which Abdulla had brought me for the purpose of 
giving my Ndorobo friends, who prize it more than anything), 
and six Grant’s gazelle skins. This made him smile again. 
The skins (which they are very fond of to sew into cloaks) he 
would not take then, as he did not want his friends to see 
them lest they should beg some from him, so he told me to 
put them away till he had an opportunity of smuggling them 
home on the quiet. 
We then packed up as quickly as we could, and went south 
to a place about the same distance from the range, where there 
was a pool of very hard and rather nasty water impregnated 
with some kind of salt mineral, and I sent for Lorgete (the 
Ndorobo who had behaved rather badly on my first arrival this 
trip). When he came he had a great many words to say, 
first, about our quarrel, trying to make out that he was the 
aggrieved party. I listened patiently and answered him 
quietly, pointing out how he had deceived me in order to 
prevent Lesiat hearing of my arrival, in consequence of which 
the latter had disturbed the elephants, while he could show me 
none, so that my chance of getting any was spoilt—through 
his selfish jealousy. At last he consented to come back to 
