WAYS AND MEANS 
397 
There were many mosquitoes in this section, but ef¬ 
fective mosquito nets over our cots protected us 
from them. 
On Mount Kenia, the high Guas Ngishu Plateau 
and Mount Elgon, the thought of sickness was en¬ 
tirely absent. These districts were found to be salu¬ 
brious and free from ticks and mosquitoes. 
Snakes 
Before going to Africa, I must admit that the 
thought of serpents occasioned much anxiety. I 
didn’t like the idea of tramping around through 
grass and reeds where poisonous snakes might be 
found. And yet, after a few days in the field, I 
never seriously thought of snakes as a possible, or 
rather* probable, source of danger. In four and a 
half months, in all kinds of country, much of the 
time on foot, I saw only six live snakes. They were 
all small and only two, a puff adder and a little 
viper, were known to be venomous. Our porters, 
with bare feet and legs, penetrated all kinds of 
snaky-looking spots and yet not one was bitten. In 
fact, I have never heard of any one being bitten 
by snakes in East Africa, and for this reason I can 
not avoid the conclusion that the fear of snakes 
need not be seriously considered as an element of 
danger in the country. 
The Natives 
So many hunting parties have gone over the 
game fields that the natives are familiar with white 
