"At moonrise we set out again, and with short occasional halts travelled
till dawn, when we were forced to rest and eat. Starting once more,
about half-past five, we crossed the river at noon. Then began the long
toilsome ascent through thick bush, the same in which I shot the bull
buffalo, only some twenty miles to the west of that spot, and not more
than twenty-five miles on the hither side of Wambe's kraal. There were
six or seven miles of this dense bush, and hard work it was to get
through it. Next came a belt of scattered forest which was easier to
pass, though, in revenge, the ground was steeper. This was about two
miles wide, and we passed it by about four in the afternoon. Above this
scattered bush lay a long steep slope of boulder-strewn ground, which
ran up to the foot of the little peak some three miles away. As we
emerged, footsore and weary, on to this inhospitable plain, some of the
men looking round caught sight of the spears of Wambe's impi advancing
rapidly not more than a mile behind us.
"At first there was a panic, and the bearers tried to throw off their
loads and run, but I harangued them, calling out to them that certainly
I would shoot the first man who did so and that if they would but trust
in me I would bring them through the mess. Now, ever since I had killed
those three elephants single-handed, I had gained great influence over
these men, and they listened to me. So off we went as hard as ever we
could go--the members of the Alpine Club would not have been in it with
us.
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