sappeared in the gloom of the tent. The trail of blood, however,
enabled us to track it, and we eventually found the snake, still full
of fight, under the edge of the ground-sheet. He made a last vicious
dart at one of the men who had run up, but was quickly given the happy
despatch by a blow on the head. Rawson now picked it up and brought it
to the light. He then put his foot on the back of its head and with a
stick forced open the jaws, when suddenly we saw two perfectly clear
jets of poison spurt out from the fangs. An Indian baboo (clerk), who
happened to be standing near, got the full benefit of this, and the
poor man was so panic-stricken that in a second he had torn off every
atom of his clothing. We were very much amused at this, as of course we
knew that although the poison was exceedingly venomous, it could do no
harm unless it penetrated a cut or open wound in the flesh. I never
found out the name of this snake, which, as I have said, was of a dark
brick-red colour all over; and I only saw one other of the same kind
all the time I was in East Africa. I came upon it suddenly one day when
out shooting. It was evidently much startled, and stood erect, hissing
venomously; but I also was so much taken aback at its appearance that I
did not think about shooting it until it had glided off and disappeared
in the thick undergrowth.

CHAPTER XV

UNSUCCESSFUL RHINO HUNTS

Although the jungle round Tsavo was a network of rhino paths I had
never so far been successful in my efforts to obtain one of these
animals, nor was my ambition yet to be realised. One day I was out
exploring in the dense bush some six or seven miles away from camp, and
found my progress more than usually slow, owing to the fact that I had
to spend most of my time crawling on all-fours through the jungle. I
was very pleased, therefore, to emerge suddenly on a broad and
well-beaten track along which I could walk comfortably in an upright
position. In this were some fresh rhino footprints which seemed barely
an hour old, so I determined to follow them up. The roadway was beaten
in places into a fine white dust by the passage of many heavy animals;
and as I pushed cautiously forward I fully expected to come face to
face with a rhino at every corner I turned. After having gone a little
way I fancied that I really did see one lying at the foot of a tree
some distance ahead of me, but on approaching cautiously found that it
was nothing more than