CHAPTER XXIX 
Reach Thlaballa water, and put the thirst behind us—Franz regains his spirits 
and is impudent—I have the first shave for nine months—Hard ground 
again—Hearty welcome of the Shoshong traders—Khama sends for me to 
hear of our voyage—We leave Shoshong with Piet Grobelar—Grobelar’s 
difference with Khama—We cross the Limpopo river—Crocodiles kill sheep 
—We visit Khamani, Khama’s brother—Potgieter’s farm in the Waterberg 
and the hot sulphur springs—The high veldt again—Game preserve at 
Grobelar’s farm. 
Two short treks brought us to Thlaballa, a succession of big 
open holes in the fine sand which draw a large supply of water 
from some underground source. Here the two roads that come 
from the Zambesi and the lake respectively join and continue 
as one to Shoshong. We pushed on in the night, as our pro¬ 
visions were exhausted, and then rested a little. Franz, who, 
now nearing home, showed unwonted insolence, chiding us for 
halting so often, and otherwise misbehaving himself, got a 
severe scolding that would have been accompanied by harsher 
measures but for the thoughts of the past hardships we had 
endured in common. 
Two more treb$ brought us at midday to a water called 
Leklotzi, where we noticed fresh wagon spoor coming from the 
Zambesi, which gave rise to some speculation as to whose it 
might be. There were rumours that a great revolution had 
taken place in Barotziland, and that Lebossi the king was killed; 
consequently we attributed the origin of these tracks to the 
missionaries, who might have found it necessary to fly the 
country. Afterwards we learned that this was an error, and that 
the tracks were simply those of one of Khama’s hunting parties. 
At Leklotzi I had a shave—the first for nine and a half 
