ully loaded, the load consisting of several
air-tight cases of ammunition, six barrels of flour, a cask of sugar, a
bag of coffee, a chest of tea, a small keg of brandy--to be used only in
cases of the utmost emergency--a case containing pickles, condiments,
preserves, salt, and other articles of a similar character, to be
regarded as luxuries and used accordingly; their own personal belongings
including clothes and firearms, a small tent made of waterproof material
for sleeping in, two net hammocks with portable supports, a full set of
cooking utensils, four sacks of mealie meal, and, finally, two large
boxes of beads of various kinds, a quantity of brass wire, and a case of
cheap mechanical and other toys, small mirrors, etcetera which Grosvenor
had had the foresight to bring out from England with him, the last three
items being destined to be employed in bartering with the natives. All
this constituted quite as heavy a load as it was at all desirable to put
upon the wagon, although the full team of twenty oxen made light of it,
especially as it was now the dry season, and the ground was firm and
hard for travelling. As for Dick and Grosvenor, they travelled on
horseback, changing their steeds at every outspan, in order to accustom
the animals to them, and gradually to get them into good, hard condition
by working them to a certain extent every day. They rode armed each
with a good, serviceable sporting rifle, capable of dealing with
practically any game except elephant, a formidable hunting knife, and a
revolver; and, in addition, each of them carried a pair of the finest
and most powerful binocular glasses that Grosvenor had been able to
procure in London. He had had the foresight to provide two pairs in
case of accident, which was fortunate, for now each rider was
independent of the other. Acting upon the advice of their friend Van
Zyl, they confined themselves strictly to short treks, averaging about
five miles each, and three treks per day, for the first four days, in
order to keep the oxen in good condition as long as possible.

Those first four days of their march were quite uneventful, the going
was good, the grass still rich and abundant, water plentiful, and there
was just enough game to keep the party well supplied with meat, while
the animals worked well and improved in condition rather than otherwise,
especially the horses, which proved to be even more promising than their
owners had hoped for when th