ch. x] TOWARDS THE GREAT FOREST 243 
crops. To the ’Ndorobo, and to them alone, the vast, 
thick forest was an open book; without their aid as 
guides both Cuninghame and our own gun-bearers were 
at fault, and found their way around with great 
difficulty and slowness. The bush people had nothing 
in the way of clothing save a blanket over the shoulders, 
but wore the usual paint and grease and ornaments ; 
each carried a spear which might have a long and 
narrow, or short and broad blade ; two of them wore 
headdresses of tripe —skull-caps made from the inside of 
a sheep’s stomach. 
For two days after reaching our camp in the open 
glade on the mountain side it rained. We were glad of 
this, because it meant that the elephants would not be 
in the bamboos, and Cuninghame and the ’Ndorobo 
went off to hunt for fresh signs. Cuninghame is as 
skilful an elephant-hunter as can be found in Africa, and 
is one of the very few white men able to help even the 
wild bushmen at their work. By the afternoon of the 
second day they were fairly well satisfied as to the 
whereabouts of the quarry. 
The following morning a fine rain was still falling 
when Cuninghame, Heller, and I started on our hunt, 
but by noon it had stopped. Of course, we went in 
single file and on foot; not even a bear-hunter from the 
cane-brakes of the lower Mississippi could ride through 
that forest. We left our home camp standing, taking 
blankets and a coat and change of underclothing for 
each of us, and two small Whymper tents, with enough 
food for three days ; I also took my wash kit and a book 
from the pigskin library. First marched the ’Ndorobo 
guides, each with his spear, his blanket round his 
shoulders, and a little bundle of corn and sweet potato. 
Then came Cuninghame, followed by his gun-bearer. 
