336 
AFRICAN GAME TRAILS 
spots and reedbeds. The country was rolling, and covered 
with fine grass, unfortunately so tall as to afford secure 
cover for lions. There were stretches bare of trees, and 
other stretches with a sparse, scattered growth of low 
thorns or of the big, glossy-leaved bush which I have spoken 
of as the African jessamine because of the singularly sweet 
and jessamine-like fragrance of its flowers. Most of these 
bushes were in full bloom, as they had been six months 
before on the Athi and three months before near Kenia; 
some bore berries, of which it is said that the wild elephant 
herds are fond. 
It is hard to lay down general rules as to the blossoming 
times of plants or breeding times of animals In equatorial 
Africa. Before we left the Uasin Gishu table-land some 
of the hartebeest cows appeared with new-born calves. 
Some of the acacias had put forth their small, globular, 
yellow blossoms, just as the acacias on the Athi plains were 
doing in the previous May. The blue lupins were flower¬ 
ing, for it is a cool, pleasant country. 
Our camp here was attractive, and Kermit and I took 
advantage of our leisure to fill out the series of specimens 
of the big hartebeest and the oribi which Heller needed 
for the National Museum. The flesh of the oribis was re¬ 
served for our own table; that of the kongonis—which had 
been duly hallalled by the Moslems among our gun-bearers 
—was turned over to what might be called the officers^ 
mess of the safari proper, the headmen, cooks, tent boys, 
gun-bearers, and saises; while of course the skinners and 
porters who happened to be out with us when any animal 
was slain got their share of the meat. We also killed two 
more hyenas; one, a dog, weighed one hundred and twenty 
