CHAPTER IX 
TO LAKE NAIVASHA 
From this camp we turned north toward Lake Nai- 
vasha. 
The Sotik country through which we had hunted 
was sorely stricken by drought. The grass was short 
and withered, and most of the waterholes were drying 
up, while both the game and the flocks and herds of 
the nomad Masai gathered round the watercourses in 
which there were still occasional muddy pools, and 
grazed their neighbourhood bare of pasturage. It was 
an unceasing pleasure to watch the ways of the game 
and to study their varying habits. Where there was a 
river from which to drink or where there were many 
pools, the different kinds of buck and the zebra often 
showed comparatively little timidity about drinking, 
and came boldly down to the water’s edge, sometimes 
in broad daylight, sometimes in darkness ; although 
even under those conditions they were very cautious if 
there was cover at the drinking place. But where the 
pools were few they never approached one without feel¬ 
ing panic dread of their great enemy the lion, who, they 
knew well, might be lurking around their drinking 
place. At such a pool I once saw a herd of zebras 
come to water at nightfall. They stood motionless 
some distance off; then they slowly approached, and 
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