herds which passed on every side. A drove of at least a
hundred zebra paused within fifty yards of them, gazing curiously, and
not until Bakari flourished a spear did they whirl and dash away. At
another time a group of slender-horned impalla bunched together not a
hundred yards away, watching fearlessly as the wagon passed.

"That looks mighty queer," declared Charlie. "Seems like they don't get
hunted much up here."

"Remember what that letter o' Mowbray's said?" interjected Jack quickly.
"How he never met any natives, I mean? Bet a cookie you were right,
General, about the slavers."

"What's worrying me," returned Schoverling, "is where that lake can be.
There seems to be hills ahead, and to the right, but I can see no sign
of a lake."

"I tell you," cried Charlie. "If we strike another drift, it's a good
guess that it comes from a lake, isn't it?"

"Yes," rumbled von Hofe, smiling. "That is right, my boy. We will follow
the next river to which we come."

Plainly enough, the country was a desert as far as human life was
concerned. But the animal life was far too abundant to suit them. That
day they passed a rhinoceros, standing to one side and watching them
from a distance of fifty yards. With his ears cocked forward he looked
like a gigantic pig, but the hunters kept their heavy rifles cocked, for
at any moment the beast might take it into his head to charge, and they
had had one experience with these huge beasts.

"He's two-horned!" exclaimed Jack, watching intently. It was their first
meeting with one of the two-horned variety, and they were relieved when
he turned and slowly trotted off, the tick-birds on his back settling
down again.

That night Schoverling issued orders that with each halt the Masai
should construct a thorn zareba for the oxen, while big fires should be
kept blazing all night. Lions were very plainly in abundance, and they
could afford to run no risk of losing the cattle, or horses either.

Toward dawn they were aroused by Guru, on guard, to find the horses
shivering with fear and the glowing eyes of lions shining from the
undergrowth around the camp. A shot seemed to have no effect, until with
a well-placed bullet Schoverling killed one of the beasts and the rest
disappeared with threatening rumbles.

"That shows what we can expect, in this no-man's country," he said.
"We'll have worse than that later on, I'm afraid."

And his words were to prove true, though not exactly as he had