152 
AFRICAN HUNTING. 
to me, called here the Mamaqua partridge—a dirty- 
brown, yellow neck, long tail, forked wings, and 
feathered to the toes like a grouse; his head somewhat 
resembles a partridge, and he has half a horse-shoe 
across his breast; he is plump and fat, but only half 
the size of an English bird; his flights are very long 
and quick, and he makes a whistling noise not unlike 
a golden plover; he is speckled over the back and 
wings with a blueish, greyish, yellowish brown, if 
the reader can form any idea what a mixture of those 
colours would look like. 
I shot yesterday a large crested bustard, the fattest 
and largest I have ever seen ; not being able to weigh 
him, we can only guess, but the lowest estimate is 
fifty pounds Dutch, fifty-four English. The only 
utensil we could hit upon that was big enough to 
cook him in was a soap-boiler, which he just fitted, 
and in which he was admirably baked and served 
at table every day for a week ; we rendered down 
more than a bottle full of oil from his inside fat, 
which is the very best thing you can use for guns. 
I made up my mind to-day I could go no farther; the 
oxen and horses are too poor, and the winter is very 
severe. I must put off for another year, as my oxen 
could not possibly trek my wagon through the 
heavy sands in their present condition, and the grass 
is so dry and so scarce that I fear they will have 
enough to do to get through the winter without work. 
I feed the horses nightly on Kaffir corn, which I trade 
from the natives for beads, knives, copper wire, &c., 
