Part 11 (1/2)
Our horses began to show signs of fatigue, and I was afraid Harry would be carried away into the wilderness To attempt to throw hias were running, there was little chance that their companion would stop
We had ridden so far that I knew our friends would be anxious about us, for they had not seen us disappear, and no one in the camp would knohat had becoht of, and we therefore pushed forward in the hopes of at length co his wild steed The difficulty was solved in an unexpected way Suddenly in front of the herd of quaggas appeared a large party of people ar loud shouts, the blacks began to send their reatest confusion, so in the direction froth the shouts and cries around it brought Harry's quagga to a standstill, and enabled us to get alongside I advised hiot o well enough”
Harry was right The brute, pretty well tired out, ith perfect quietness, and sub rope and hobbles round its legs, so that there was no chance of its breaking away
”I'll tame him!” cried Harry ”Tell the hiive it him”
By this tias, had come close to us We considered that it would be prudent, if not an act of politeness, to thank thea; and Toko, as our spokesman, so explainedus, and invited us to their village
We should have excused ourselves, on the plea of having at once to return to ca to a close, and even Toko declared that during the darkness he should be unable to find his way back, we accepted the invitation, and set off with our new friends, ere in high spirits at the thoughts of the quagga flesh they were about to enjoy
Their huts were larger and cleaner than any we had yet seen; and we found that, although the people were hunters, they were also agriculturists, and possessed pretty extensive plantations at the back of the village
The women were immediately set to work to prepare the feast; and in a short ti We, of course, soon knocked off, and begged perone to sleep, than ere aroused by a tre out, we found all the wo their children, whom they had hauled out of their beds, or rather up fro the the cause froht that an i the plantations The object of beating the children was to frighten away the aniood news for us, as we hoped to obtain full cargoes for our waggons We at once offered to go out and shoot the elephants, if the natives would guide us to the trees in which we could take up our posts for the purpose
We soon found plenty of volunteers, and, guided by thehbourhood of the plantations, near which they assured us the elephants were sure to pass We gladdened their hearts by telling them that they should have the meat, provided we retained the tusks for our share The noise, however, continued; the wo their rods, the children howling, dogs barking, and thefire-brands Our fear was that the elephants would be frightened, and turn back; but scarcely had we climbed up the trees, each of us accoh the gloo fro ai to kill some and turn back the rest Two fell, and the herd halted, apparently too ave us ti by the fallen bodies of their coain all fired; and, beyond our round, each shot through the head Whether or not the shrieks in front distracted their attention and ardless of the sound of our shots, I cannot say; but the anih some of them trumpeted notes of alarm, and advanced with apparent caution The rest stopped lazily, waving about their huge trunks
I was very thankful that ere high enough up the trees to be out of their reach Though several passed, us before we had reloaded, others followed, and three more bit the dust Neither did this stop the onward course of the elephants; for, breaking down the fences which enclosed the plantations, they swept across, seizing the fruit with their trunks, and transferring it to their ether The cries of the inhabitants did not stop their advance, though it tended to turn the with several huts, they trampled them down as if they had been built of cards Had it not been for the exertions of the people, the whole village would have been destroyed; which Toko assured us, had frequently in other instances been the case
As soon as the elephants had passed, we descended, and as they showed no inclination to turn back, we pursued the I aht not be credited
The reive up the chase until we had expended nearly all the ath we returned to the village, where we found the people taking the loss of their crops very philosophically, as they considered that the abundance of elephant meat would make theet a surfeit,” remarked Harry ”I suspect in a few days they'll wish the carcases at Jericho, or at all events, at a distance froa would have fared ill, had the elephants come across theoodbye, andto return for the tusks, which we reminded them were ours
Harry wisely kept a sack over his aniuide it The creature onderfully well, and sooner than we had expected we cahly satisfactory, and without a moment's delay the oxens' heads were turned in the direction of the village
The people received us as old friends, and to encourage them to help us we proht in They had already begun to butcher the elephants which had fallen in their plantations, and in every direction round the huts strips of flesh were hung up to dry, creating an odour far fro in the tusks Harry and I were highly co cleaned and stoay, our waggons were nearly full: another day's successful hunting would enable us to turn our faces ard We accordingly pro us information as to the direction the herd had taken
Harry and I had been congratulating ourselves on the prospect of a quiet night's rest in our tent between the waggons; but we had not been long asleep ere aroused by a tremendous clap of thunder which seemed to break directly over our heads, while almost i and shouting fro on our coats, we hurried out As we did so a curious sight aze The whole of the male population were on foot, ar darted fro away at the
As es lest we ht be struck by the arrohich we had heard were poisoned The thunder rattled and roared, the lightning flashed, and the men shrieked and howled I asked Toko what it allat the storm-clouds to drive them away,” he answered
”Do you think it will produce that effect?” I asked
”Who knows?” he replied ”They fancy so, and are therefore right to try and get rid of the storm, and drive ahat they believe would do the who rules the heavens would not be influenced by such folly, though he would be ready to hear the prayers of the shtly than I should have expected
”They are poor ignorant savages,” he re hite men”