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The next morning, I started to the mountains to explore the limit
that I had proposed for my expedition on the Settite. The Arabs
had informed me that a river of some importance descended from
the mountains, and joined the main stream about twelve miles from
our camp. The aggageers were seriously expecting an attack from
the Base, and they advised me not to remain much longer in this
spot. The route was highly interesting: about five miles to the
south-east of the camp we entered the hilly and mountainous
country; to the east rose the peaked head of Allatakoora, about
seven thousand feet from the base, while S.S.E. was the lofty
table-mountain, known by the Arabs as Boorkotan. We rode through
fertile valleys, all of which were free from grass, as the
various fires had spread throughout the country; at times we
entered deep gorges between the hills, which were either granite,
quartz, or basalt, the latter predominating. In about three hours
and a half we arrived at Hor Mehetape, the stream that the Arabs
had reported. Although a powerful torrent during the rains, it
was insignificant as one of the tributaries to the Settite, as
the breadth did not exceed twenty-five yards. At this season it
was nearly dry, and at no time did it appear to exceed a depth of
ten or twelve feet. As we had arrived at this point, some
distance above the junction, we continued along the margin of the
stream for about two miles until we reached the Settite. The Hor
(a ravine) Mehetape was the limit of my exploration; it was
merely a rapid mountain torrent, the individual effect of which
would be trifling; but we were now among the mountains whose
drainage caused the sudden rise of the Atbara river and the Nile.
Far as the eye could reach to the south and east, the range
extended in a confused mass of peaks of great altitude, from the
sharp granite head of one thousand, to flat-topped basalt hills
of five or six thousand feet, and other conical points far
exceeding, and perhaps double, that altitude.

The Settite was very beautiful in this spot, as it emerged from
the gorge between the mountains, and it lay in a rough stony
valley about two hundred feet below our path as we ascended from
the junction of the Hor to better riding ground. In many places,
our route lay over broken stones, which sloped at an inclination
of about thirty degrees throughout the entire distance of the
river below; these were formed of decomposed basalt rocks that
had apparently been washed from decaying hills by the torrents of
the rainy season. At other parts of the route, we crossed above
similar debris of basalt that lay at an angle of about sixty
degrees, from a height of perhaps two hundred feet to the water's
edge, and reminded me of the rubbish shot from the side of a
mountain when boring a tunnel. The whole of the basalt in this
portion of the country was a dark slate colour; in some places it
was almost black; upon breaking a great number of pieces I found
small crystals of olivine. Much of the granite was a deep red,
but the exterior coating was in all cases decomposed, and
crumbled at a blow; exhibiting a marked contrast to the
hard-faced granite blocks in the rainless climate of Lower Egypt.
We saw but little game during the march--a few nellut and tetel,
and the smaller antelopes, but no larger animals.

We returned to camp late in the evening, and I found the howartis
had secured the crocodile of yesterday, but the whole party was
anxious to return to the camp at Delladilla, as unpleasant
reports were brought into camp by our spies, who had seen parties
of the Base in several directions.

CHAPTER XVI.

ABOU DO IS GREEDY.

ABOU DO and Suleiman had lately given me some trouble, especially
the former, whose covetous nature had induced him to take much
more than his share of the hides of buffaloes and other animals
that I had shot; all of which I had given to my head camel-man
and tracker, Taher Noor, to divide among his people and the
Tokrooris. This conduct was more improper, since the aggageers
had become perfectly useless as elephant-hunters; they had ridden
so recklessly upon unnecessary occasions, that all their horses
were lamed, and, with the exception of Abou Do's, they were
incapable of hunting. My three, having been well cared for, were
in excellent condition. Abou Do coolly proposed that I should
lend him my horses, which I of course refused, as I had a long
journey before me; this led to disagreement, and I ordered him
and his people to leave my camp, and return to Geera. During the
time they had been with me, I had shot great numbers of animals,
including large antelopes, buffaloes, elephants, &c.; and about
twenty camel-loads of dried flesh, hides, fat, &c. had been
transported to Geera as the Arabs' share of the spoils. They had
also the largest share of ivory, and altogether they had never
made so successful a hunting expedition. It was time to part;
their horses being used up, they began to be discontented,
therefore I had concluded that it would be advisable to separate,
to avoid a graver misunderstanding.

I warned them not to disturb my hunting-grounds by attempting to
hunt during their journey, but they were to. ride straight home,
which they could accomplish in four days, without baggage camels.
This they promised to do, and we parted.

I was now without aggageers, as Taher Sheriff's party had
disagreed with Abou Do some time before, and they were hunting on
their own account on the banks of the river Royan, which I
intended to visit after I should have thoroughly explored the
Settite. I made up my mind to have one more day in the
neighbourhood of my present camp, and then to return to our old
quarters at Delladilla, previous to our journey to the Royan
junction.

Within three hundred yards of the camp was a regular game path,
by which the animals arrived at the river to drink every morning
from seven to nine. I had shot several tetel and ariel by simply
waiting behind a rock at this place, and, as this was my last
day, I once more concealed myself, and was shortly rewarded by
the arrival of several herds, including nellut (A. Strepsiceros),
tetel (A. Bubalis), ariel (G. Dama), the black-striped gazelle
(G. Dorcas), the small oterop (Calotragus Montanus); and, among
these, two ostriches. I had seen very few ostriches in this
country. I now had a good chance, as the herd of animals returned
from drinking by charging at full speed up the steep bank from
the water, and they passed about ninety yards from my
hiding-place, headed by the ostriches. Having the little
Fletcher, I was suddenly tempted to fire a right and left, so as
to bag an ostrich with one barrel, and a tetel with the other.
Both fell for an instant; the tetel dead, shot through the neck;
but my ostrich, that was a fine cock bird, immediately recovered,
and went off with his wife as hard as their long legs could carry
them. I was exceedingly disgusted; I had evidently fired too far
behind, not having allowed sufficiently for the rapidity of their
speed. However, to make amends, I snatched a spare single-rifle
from Hassan, and knocked over another tetel that was the last of
the herd. For about an hour I attempted to follow up the tracks
of the ostrich, but among the rocky hills this was impossible. I
therefore mounted Aggahr, and with my tracker, Taher Noor, and
the Tokrooris as gun-bearers, I crossed the river and rode
straight into the interior of the country. This was now
thoroughly clear, as the fire had consumed the grass, and had
left the surface perfectly black. Upon the ashes, the track of
every animal could be seen distinctly.

I had ridden about four miles, followed, as usual, by two camels,
with water, ropes, &c. when we observed in a perfectly open
place, about three hundred yards from us, a rhinoceros standing
alone. Fortunately, there was little or no wind, or, as we were
to windward of him, he would instantly have perceived us. The
moment that I saw him, I backed my horse and motioned to my
people to retreat out of sight, which they did immediately.
Dismounting, I gave them the horse, and, accompanied only by
Taher Noor, who carried one of my spare rifles, I took a Reilly
No. 10, and we made a circuit so as to obtain the wind, and to
arrive upon the lee side of the rhinoceros. This was quickly
accomplished, but upon arrival at the spot, he was gone. The
black ashes of the recent fire showed his, foot-marks as clearly
as though printed in ink, and as these were very close together,
I knew that he had walked slowly off, and that he had not been
disturbed, otherwise he would have started quickly. He had gone
down wind; it would, therefore, be impossible to follow upon his
tracks. Our only resource was to make another circuit, when,
should his tracks not have crossed the arc, we should be sure
that he was to windward. Accordingly, we described half a circle
of about five hundred yards. No tracks had crossed our path; the
ground was stony and full of hollows, in which grew a few
scattered mimosas, while the surface of the earth was covered in
many places with dark brown masses of basalt rock. We carefully
stepped over this uneven ground, lest some falling stone might
give the alarm, and we momentarily expected to be in view of the
enemy as we arrived at the edge of each successive hollow. Sure
enough, as I glanced down a sudden inclination covered with
scorched mimosas, I perceived him standing on the slope beneath
a tree within five-and-thirty paces; this was close enough, and
I took a steady shot behind the shoulder. The instant that I
fired, he whisked sharply round, and looked upon all sides for
the cause of his wound. I had taken the precaution to kneel down
immediately after firing, and I now crouched close to a rock
about two feet high, with which my brown blouse matched exactly,
as well as my skin-covered hunting-cap. For a few moments he
sought upon all sides for an enemy, during which I remained like
a block of stone, but with my finger on the trigger ready for the
left-hand barrel should he charge. Taher Noor was lying on the
ground behind a stone about five yards from me, and the
rhinoceros, having failed to discover us, walked slowly past me
within less than ten yards, and gained the summit of the
inclination, where the ground was level. As he passed, I reloaded
quickly, and followed behind him. I saw that he was grievously
wounded, as he walked slowly, and upon arrival at a
thickly-spreading mimosa he lay down. We now advanced towards the
tree, and I sent Taher Noor round to the other side in order to
divert his attention should he be able to rise. This he quickly
proved by springing up as I advanced; accordingly, I halted until
Taher Noor had taken his stand about eighty paces beyond the
tree. The rhinoceros now turned and faced him; this gave me the
opportunity that I had expected, and I ran quickly to within
thirty yards, just in time to obtain a good shoulder shot, as
hearing my footsteps he turned towards me. Whiff! whiff! and he
charged vigorously upon the shot; but just as I prepared to fire
the remaining barrel, he ran round and round in a narrow circle,
uttering a short, shrill cry, and fell heavily upon his side. I
threw a stone at him, but he was already dead. Taher Noor
returned for the people, who shortly arrived with the camels. I
found that the last bullet of quicksilver and lead from my Reilly
No. 10 had passed completely through the body, just behind the
shoulder. The first shot was also a mortal wound, having broken
one rib upon either side, and passed through the posterior
portion of the lungs; the bullet was sticking under the skin on
the opposite flank. The hide of the rhinoceros is exceedingly
easy to detach from the body, as the quality is so hard and stiff
that it separates from the flesh like the peel of a ripe orange.

In a couple of hours, the hide had been detached in sections for
shields, and sufficient flesh was loaded upon the camel, together
with the vicious-looking head, which was secured by ropes upon
the saddle. We were en route for the camp, when we suddenly came
upon fresh elephant tracks, upon following which, we discovered,
after about an hour's march, the spoor of horses on the same
path. At once the truth flashed upon me that, although Abou Do
had promised to return direct home, he was somewhere in the
neighbourhood, and he and his two companions were disturbing the
country by hunting. I at once gave up the idea of following the
elephants, as, in all probability, these aggageers had pursued
them some hours ago. In a very bad humour I turned my horse's
head and took the direction for the Settite river. As we
descended from the hilly ground, after the ride of about four
miles, we arrived upon an extensive plain, upon which I noticed
a number of antelopes galloping as though disturbed; a few
moments later I observed three horsemen, a camel, and several men
on foot, steering in the same direction as ourselves for the
river, but arriving from the high ground upon which we had seen
the elephants. These were soon distinguished, and I rode towards
them with my people; they were the aggageers, with some of the
hippopotami hunters.

Upon our arrival among them, they looked exceedingly sheepish, as
they were caught in the act. Suspended most carefully upon one
side of the camel, in a network of ropes, was a fine young
rhinoceros which they had caught, having hunted the mother until
she forsook the calf. Johann Schmidt had offered forty dollars
for any young animal of this species, for the Italian menageries,
therefore to the aggageers this was a prize of great value. I had
hardly directed my attention to the calf, when I noticed a rope
that was forcibly placed under the throat to support the heavy
head, the weight of which bearing upon the cord was evidently
producing strangulation. The tongue of the animal was protruding,
and the tail stiffened and curled convulsively above the back,
while a twitching of the hind legs, that presently stretched to
their full extent, persuaded me that the rhinoceros was in his
last gasp. As I looked intently at the animal, while my Tokrooris
abused Abou Do for having deceived us, I told the aggageers that
they had not gained much by their hunt, as the rhinoceros was
dead. For a moment Abou Do smiled grimly, and, quite unconscious
of the real fact, Suleiman replied, "It is worth forty dollars to
us." "Forty dollars for a dead rhinoceros calf!" I exclaimed;
"who is fool enough to give it?"

Abou Do glanced at the rhinoceros; his expression changed; he
jumped from his horse, and, assisted by the other aggageers, he
made the camel kneel as quickly as possible, and they hastened to
unstrap the unfortunate little beast, which, upon being released
and laid upon its side, convulsively stretched out its limbs, and
lay a strangled rhinoceros. The aggageers gazed with dismay at
their departed prize, and, with superstitious fear, they
remounted their horses without uttering a word, and rode away;
they attributed the sudden death of the animal to the effect of
my "evil eye." We turned towards our camp. My Tokrooris were
delighted, and I heard them talking and laughing together upon
the subject, and remarking upon the extremely "bad eye" of their
master.

On the rising of the sun next day we had struck our camp, and
were upon the march to Delladilla. On the way I shot a splendid
buck mehedehet (R. Ellipsyprimna), and we arrived at our old
quarters, finding no change except that elephants had visited
them in our absence, and our cleanly swept circus was covered
with the dung of a large herd. As this spot generally abounded
with game, I took a single-barrelled small rifle, while the men
were engaged in pitching the tent and arranging the camp, and
with Taher Noor as my only companion, I strolled through the
forest, expecting to obtain a shot at a nellut within a quarter
of a mile. I had walked about that distance, and had just entered
upon a small green glade, when I perceived, lying at full length
upon the sand, a large lion, who almost immediately sprang up,
and at the same moment received a bullet from my rifle as he
bounded beneath a bush and crouched among some withered grass. I
was unloaded, when, to my astonishment, Taher Noor immediately
drew his sword, and, with his shield in his left hand, he
advanced boldly towards the wounded lion. I reloaded as quickly
as possible, just as this reckless Hamran had arrived within
springing distance of the lion, who positively slunk away and
declined the fight; retreating into the thick thorns, it
disappeared before I could obtain a shot. Taher Noor explained,
that his object in advancing towards the lion was to attract its
attention; he had expected that it would have remained in a
crouching position until I should have reloaded; but he ran the
extreme risk of a charge, in which case he would have fared badly
with simple sword and shield. Being close to the tent, I
returned, and, in addition to my single-barrelled rifle, I took
my two Reillys No. 10, with Hassan and Hadji Ali. In company with
Taher Noor we searched throughout the bushes for the wounded
lion, but without success. I now determined to make a cast,
hoping that we might succeed in starting some other animal that
would give us a better chance. The ground was sandy but firm,
therefore we made no sound in walking, and, as the forest was
bounded upon two sides by the river, and separated from the main
land by a ravine, the fire that had cleared the country of grass
had spared this portion, which was an asylum for all kinds of
game, as it afforded pasturage and cover. We had not continued
our stroll for five minutes beyond the spot lately occupied by
the lion, when we suddenly came upon two bull buffaloes, who were
lying beneath a thick bush on the edge of a small glade: they
sprang up as we arrived, and started off. I made a quick shot as
they galloped across the narrow space, and dropped one apparently
dead with a Reilly No. 10. My Tokrooris were just preparing to
run in and cut the throat, as good Mussulmans, when the buffalo,
that was not twenty yards distant, suddenly sprang to his feet
and faced us. In another moment, with a short grunt, he
determined upon a charge, but hardly was he in his first bound,
when I fired the remaining barrel aimed at the point of the nose,
as this was elevated to such a degree that it would have been
useless to have fired at the forehead. He fell stone dead at the
shot; we threw some clods of earth at him, but this time there
was no mistake. Upon an examination of the body, we could only
find the marks of the first bullet that had passed through the
neck; there was no other hole in the skin, neither was there a
sign upon the head or horns that he had been shot; at length I
noticed blood issuing from the nose, and we found that the bullet
had entered the nostril; I inserted a ramrod as a probe, and we
cut to the extremity and found the bullet imbedded in the spine,
which was shattered to pieces in a portion of the neck. As a
souvenir of this very curious shot, I preserved the skull. My men
now flayed the buffalo and took a portion of the meat, but I
ordered them to leave the carcase as a bait for lions, with which
this neighbourhood abounded, although it was exceedingly
difficult to see them, as they were concealed in the dense covert
of nabbuk bush. I left the buffalo, and strolled through the
jungle towards the river. As I was leisurely walking through
alternate narrow glades and thick jungle, I heard a noise that
sounded like the deep snort of the hippopotamus. I approached the
steep bank of the river, and crept carefully to the edge,
expecting to see the hippo as I peered over the brink. Instead of
the hippopotamus, a fine lion and lioness were lying on the sand
about sixty yards to my left, at the foot of the bank. At the
same instant they obtained our wind, and sprang up the high bank
into the thick jungle, without giving me a better chance than a
quick shot through a bush as they were disappearing.

I now returned home, determined to circumvent the lions if
possible in this very difficult country. That night we were
serenaded by the roaring of these animals in all directions, one
of them having visited our camp, around which we discovered his
footprints on the following morning. I accordingly took Taher
Noor, with Hadji Ali and Hassan, two of my trusty Tokrooris, and
went straight to the spot where I had left the carcase of the
buffalo. As I had expected, nothing remained--not even a bone:
the ground was much trampled, and tracks of lions were upon the
sand; but the body of the buffalo had been dragged into the
thorny jungle. I was determined, if possible, to get a shot,
therefore I followed carefully the track left by the carcase,
which had formed a path in the withered grass. Unfortunately the
lions had dragged the buffalo down wind; therefore, after I had
arrived within the thick nabbuk and high grass, I came to the
conclusion that my only chance would be to make a long circuit,
and to creep up wind through the thorns, until I should be
advised by my nose of the position of the carcase, which would by
this time lie in a state of putrefaction, and the lions would
most probably be with the body. Accordingly, I struck off to my
left, and continuing straight forward for some hundred yards, I
again struck into the thick jungle, and came round to the wind.
Success depended on extreme caution, therefore I advised my three
men to keep close behind me with the spare rifles, as I carried
my single-barrelled Beattie. This rifle was extremely accurate,
therefore I had chosen it for this close work, when I expected to
get a shot at the eye or forehead of a lion crouching in the
bush. Softly and with difficulty I crept forward, followed
closely by my men; through the high withered grass, beneath the
dense green nabbuk bushes; peering through the thick covert, with
the nerves turned up to full pitch, and the finger on the trigger
ready for any emergency. We had thus advanced for about half an
hour, during which I frequently applied my nose to within a foot
of the ground to catch the scent, when a sudden puff of wind
brought the unmistakeable smell of decomposing flesh. For the
moment I halted, and, looking round to my men, I made a sign that
we were near to the carcase, and that they were to be ready with
the rifles. Again I crept gently forward, bending, and sometimes
crawling, beneath the thorns to avoid the slightest noise. As I
approached, the scent became stronger, until I at length felt
that I must be close to the cause. This was highly exciting.
Fully prepared for a quick shot, I stealthily crept on. A
tremendous roar in the dense thorns within a few feet of me
suddenly brought my rifle to the shoulder: almost in the same
instant I observed the three-quarter figure of either a lion or
a lioness within three yards of me, on the other side of the
bush, under which I had been creeping--the foliage concealed the
head, but I could almost have touched the shoulder with my rifle.
Much depended upon the bullet; and I fired exactly through the
shoulder. Another tremendous roar! and a crash in the bushes as
the animal made a bound forward, was succeeded immediately by a
similar roar, as another lion took the exact position of the
last, and stood wondering at the report of the rifle, and seeking
for the cause of the intrusion. This was a grand lion with a
shaggy mane; but I was unloaded, keeping my eyes fixed on the
beast, while I stretched my hand back for a spare rifle; the lion
remained standing, but gazing up wind with his head raised,
snuffing in the air for a scent of the enemy. No rifle was put in
my hand. I looked back for an instant, and saw my Tokrooris
faltering about five yards behind me. I looked daggers at them,
gnashing my teeth and shaking my fist. They saw the lion, and
Taher Noor snatching a rifle from Hadji Ali, was just about to
bring it, when Hassan, ashamed, ran forward--the lion disappeared
at the same moment! Never was such a fine chance lost through the
indecision of the gun-bearers! I made a vow never to carry a
single-barrelled rifle again when hunting large game. If I had
had my dear little Fletcher 24, I should have nailed the lion to
a certainty.

However, there was not much time for reflection--where was the
first lion? Some remains of the buffalo lay upon my right, and I
expected to find the lion most probably crouching in the thorns
somewhere near us. Having reloaded, I took one of my Reilly No.
10 rifles and listened attentively for a sound. Presently I heard
within a few yards a low growl. Taher Noor drew his sword, and,
with his shield before him, he searched for the lion, while I
crept forward towards the sound, which was again repeated. A low
roar, accompanied by a rush in the jungle, showed us a glimpse of
the lion, as he bounded off within ten or twelve yards: but I had
no chance to fire. Again the low growl was repeated, and upon
quietly creeping towards the spot, I saw a splendid animal
crouched upon the ground among the withered and broken grass. The
lioness lay dying with the bullet wound in the shoulder.
Occasionally, in her rage, she bit her own paw violently, and
then struck and clawed the ground. A pool of blood lay by her
side. She was about ten yards from us, and I instructed my men to
throw a clod of earth at her (there were no stones), to prove
whether she could rise, while I stood ready with the rifle. She
merely replied with a dull roar, and I terminated her misery by
a ball through the head. She was a beautiful animal; the patch of
the bullet was sticking in the wound; she was shot through both
shoulders, and as we were not far from the tent, I determined to
have her brought to camp upon a camel as an offering to my wife.
Accordingly I left my Tokrooris, while I went with Taher Noor to
fetch a camel.

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