/ 
rue retreating 
is _, «a there is double 
wread: and doubtless 
BURCHELLS ZEBRA, 
a . 7 * 
_ ss of the , temptation of mixing yet 
. . sf 
again with the fug Oh, yes, there is freedom, and joy, and pride, p al stress, and shortly afterwards was 
unable to move. . Afar in the desert alone to ride! ed in preference to a watch—and being 
There is rapture to vault on the champiny steed, a 
a 7 2 i € 
unwilling to lose 5¢ And to bound away with the eagle’s speed ; at : arefully retraced my steps several miles im 
rt . : * ee . . 
search of it withou With the death-fraught firelock inmyhand ~~" ed in those of the countless herds which had 
r The only law of the desert lant, all” 4 _ : 
crossed the plain. _ perfect idea of my locality, but returning to my horse, I 
led him in what I b _ma sketch of the country which had been given me at Litakoo 
by our excellent frie 
Are in point of coloring betwixt the common” 
plants the first named of its allies to yao? wing: materials, I always carried about me, that that course would 
j ‘ mi tree, I tedl li j sati 
eventually bring MO. sting jee ead ek fear than bio nder a tree, I repeatedly and deliberately seated the heavens in order to satisfy 
eary horse nearly the whole of the day under a burning sun, my flagging spirits were 
myself of the direct | the Southern tropic. 
at length revived by the appeauuc. ut several villages. Under other circumstances, I should have avoided intercourse with their inhos- 
pitable inmates, but dying with thirst, I eagerly entered each in succession, and to my inexpressible disappointment, found them 
deserted, Evidences existing of their having been recently inhabited, I shot a Hartebeest, in the hope that the smell of meat might 
attract some straggler to the spot. But no! Though the keen.sighted vultures, that were my only attendants, descended in multitudes, 
not one woolly headed negro appeared to dispute the prey. In many of the trees I observed large thatched houses resembling hay- 
stacks ; and under the impression that these had been erected in so singular a position by the natives, as a measure of security against 
the Lions, whose recent tracks I could distinguish in every direction, I ascended more than one in the hope of at least finding some 
vessel containing water, Alas! they proved to be the habitations of large communities of Social Grosbeaks, those winged republicans 
already described, but of whose architecture and magnificent edifices, I had until then entertained a very inadequate conception. Faint 
and bewildered, my prospects began to brighten as the shadows of evening lengthened. Large troops of Ostriches running in one direc- 
tion, plainly indicated that IT was approaching water: and immediately afterwards, I struck into a path impressed with the foot-marks 
of women and children—soon arriving at a nearly dry river, which, ranning East and West, I at once concluded to be that of which I 
was in search. 
Those only who have suffered as I did during that day from prolonged thirst, ean form a competent idea of the delight, and I 
may add, energy, afforded me by the first draught of the putrid waters of the Meritsane. They equally invigorated my exhausted steed, 
whom I mounted immediately, and cantered up the bank of the river, in order if possible to reach the waggons before dark. The 
banks are precipitous—the channel deep, broken and rocky: clusters of reeds and long grass indicating those spots which retain the 
water during the hot months. It was with no small difficulty, after crossing the river, that I foreed my way through the broad belt of 
tangled bushes which margined the edge. The moonless night was fast closing around, and my weary horse again began to droop. 
The Lions, commencing their nightly prowl, were roaring in all directions, and no friendly fire or beacon presenting itself to my view, 
the only alternative was to bivouae where [ was, and to renew my search in the morning, Kindling a fire, | formed a thick bush into a 
pretty secure hut, by cutting away the middle, and closing the entrance with thorn branches; and having knee-haltered my horse to 
prevent his straying, 1 proceeded to dine upon a Guinea fowl—whose head I had fortunately knocked off with a rifle ball, as the speckled 
fowl roosted with many others on the tree over head—concluding the repast with another draught of impure water. Hoping to desery 
a beacon fire I again ascended the tallest tree, but my eye ranged round the gloomy horizon in vain. The monarchs of the forest now 
roared incessantly, and so alarmed my horse that I was obliged repeatedly to discharge my rifle in order to give him confidence.» It 
was piercingly cold, and all my fuel being expended, I suffered as much from chill and cramp, as I had done during the day from the 
scorching heat. About three o'clock however, completely overcome by fatigue, I could keep my eyes open no longer, but commending 
myself to the protecting care of Providence, fell into a profound sleep. 
My first thoughts, on opening my eyes in the morning, were naturally of my horse. Starting from my heathy bed, and extri- 
eating myself with some difficulty from the abuttis behind which I was ensconced, I hastened to the spot where I had last seen him- 
but his place was empty. I roamed every where in search of him, and ascended eyery tree which offered a good look out, but he was 
nowhere to be seen. It was more than probable that he had been eaten by Lions, but when T had almost given up the search in 
despair, and was reluctantly resolving to depart without him, to my joy T at length found his foot-mark, and traced him to a deep 
hollow near the river's brink, where he was quietly grazing. The night's rest, if so it could be called, had so far restored him to 
strength, that I forthwith pursued my journey along the bank of the river, which I now re-crossed opposite to the site of some former 
scene of strife, marked by numerous human skeletons, bleached by exposure. A little further on I disturbed a large Lion which walked 
slowly aff, occasionally stopping and looking sulkily over his shoulder, as he deliberately ascended the opposite bank. In the course of 
half an hour, f reached the end of dense jungle, and immediately discovered the waggon road; but as I could detect no recent traces 
* Narrative p. 68. 
