340 
AFRICAN GAME TRAILS 
The trouble is one which obtains in all new countries, where 
the settlers have to name new beasts; and is, of course, 
primarily due to the fact that the terms already found in 
the language originally applied only to domestic animals 
and to European beasts of the chase. Africanders, whether 
Dutch or English, speak of all antelope, of either sex, as 
‘‘buck.’’ Then they call the males and females of the larger 
kinds bulls and cows, just as Americans do when they speak 
of moose, wapiti, and caribou; and the males and females 
of the smaller kinds they usually speak of as rams and ewes. 
While on safari to the ’Nzoi I was even more interested 
in honey birds which led us to honey than I was in the 
game. Before starting for Africa John Burroughs had es¬ 
pecially charged me to look personally into this extraor¬ 
dinary habit of the honey bird; a habit so extraordinary 
that he was inclined to disbelieve the reality of its ex¬ 
istence. But it unquestionably does exist. Every experi¬ 
enced hunter and every native who lives in the wilderness 
has again and again been an eyewitness of it. Kermit, 
in addition to his experience in the Sotik, had been 
led by a honey bird to honey in a rock, near Lake Han- 
nington. Once while I was tracking game a honey bird 
made his appearance, chattering loudly and flying beside 
us; I let two of the porters follow it, and it led them to 
honey. On the morning of the day we reached the ’Nzoi, 
a honey bird appeared beside the safari, behaving in the 
same manner. Some of the men begged to be allowed to 
follow it; while they were talking to me the honey bird 
flew to a big tree fifty yards off, and called loudly as it 
flitted to and fro in the branches; and sure enough there 
was honey in the tree. I let some of the men stay to get the 
