of the patrol.
"We'll bivouac close to the village and try our luck to-morrow. Ground
will be cool enough by then, I reckon."

"Von Gobendorff won't stand much chance in that," remarked another,
indicating the devastated ground. "We may find his remains. That'll
be some satisfaction."

"Unless he started the fire," added Wilmshurst.

"But we were surrounding his hiding-place," declared the first speaker.

"We believe we were," continued the subaltern. "It's just likely that
we missed his spoor, and that he was to windward of us. The fire may
have started spontaneously, but it's my belief that von Gobendorff
fired the grass."

At daybreak on the following morning the patrol recrossed the river.
With a heavy dew still upon the ground the devastated track gave the
horses no inconvenience, although the air was heavy with the pungent
smell of charred wood. In extended order they followed the track which
the fugitive had been reported to have taken until they arrived at the
further-most limit of the fire.

Each man as he closed in the centre made the same report--nothing had
been seen of the body of the much-sought-after Hun.

"We've drawn a blank, it seems," remarked Wilmshurst. "There's nothing
for it but to carry on until either we overtake him or come in touch
with the enemy patrols. We've a clear twenty-four hours before we
rejoin our regiment."

Mile after mile the patrol rode, but not the faintest trace of von
Gobendorff's line of flight was to be seen. Whether he was alive or
dead was a mystery yet unsolved.

Towards midday they arrived at a kraal situated in a vast semi-circular
expanse of open ground bounded on three sides by scarps of the
Karewenda Hills. The greatest caution was now necessary, the task of
the patrol, failing von Gobendorff's capture, being to find out whether
the lower slopes of the hill were held in force or only lightly so. If
possible there was to be an avoidance of an exchange of shots with
hostile outposts, but in any case the Rhodesians were to withdraw at
the first sign of opposition.

The headman of the kraal, like most of his kind, was very
communicative. Already the natives were appreciating the change of
masters, for under German rule their lot was a hard one, forced labour
and scanty or often no remuneration being the order of things.

He had seen no one answering to von Gobendorff's description, but he
gave other information. The Germans were withdrawing th