EAST AFRICA AND ITS BIG GAME. 
2 5 2 
one beast passed under the raft, grating and bumping 
against it with its back. Previously I had felt a 
similar sensation, only in my case it was due to a large 
alligator, whose scaly back caused the raft to vibrate so 
strongly that I thought, for the moment, we had run 
aground. After landing at our camp from my second 
voyage in quest of hippos, we sent off some men on 
the raft to cut up the beast that C- had killed 
some two miles farther down the lake, but they 
shortly returned, with rather a sheepish air, and said 
that they did not dare go on, as it was getting too 
dark, and the hippos were very fierce and had come up 
quite close to them ! 
The following day we were to return to Taveta, and 
in the early morning a special detachment of our 
men arrived to help carry in the meat, and were 
accompanied by several Wa-taveta, particular friends 
of Martin. He had given them the “office” that 
there was a chance of obtaining meat for nothing if 
they cared to undertake a sixteen-mile walk. I had, 
by the bye, about this time a row with our head-man 
Caceche, for on my asking him how many loads of 
meat had been carried into camp from the first two 
hippos killed, he had the impudence to say that only 
two loads had been brought in, and this, after my own 
eyes had seen quite thirty of our men return laden 
with meat. lie excused himself by saying that, as 
it was dark when they came in, he had not been able 
to take proper count of the exact number; but the 
fact was that, as usual when within a march or two of 
