II 
THE FIGHT WITH THE FOUR 
21 
that that pinch seemed to revive me at once, and 
give me energy calmly to review the situation. 
As it was drawing towards evening, a time when 
all wild animals wend their way to the rivers and 
pools to quench their thirst, we calculated that 
our quarry, thoroughly tired by the long chase, 
would probably be making for water at a leisurely 
pace. Tightening our belts, and indulging in 
another pinch of snuff to freshen our jaded 
senses, we rose and started off once more, resolved 
to make one final, desperate effort to bag some of 
the herd, Simba reverently raising his face heaven¬ 
wards and imploring:—‘Jondie neusimungo nepa 
sese oui dembo! ’ (Please, God, give us these 
elephants.) 
After another period of arduous tracking, we 
discovered that they had left the bush and 
taken to a comparatively open country, so, 
breaking into a steady but somewhat feeble trot, 
we managed, about an hour afterwards, to come 
up with them, just in time to see them, in 
single file, slowly entering a patch of long grass. 
As the sun was rapidly sinking and darkness 
would be upon us in less than an hour, it 
was now a case of neck or nothing, so strain¬ 
ing every muscle, we dashed after them, excite¬ 
ment and the cool, crisp air of evening pouring 
new life into our veins. What a devil-may-care 
