a great brown heap of loose earth which one of
the huge beasts had raised by rolling about on the soft ground. This,
however, was evidently a resting-place which was regularly used, so I
made up my mind to spend a night in the overhanging branches of the
tree.

The next afternoon, accordingly, Mahina and I made our way back to the
place, and by dusk we were safely but uncomfortably perched among the
branches directly over the path. We had scarcely been there an hour
when to our delight we heard a great rhino plodding along the track in
our direction. Unfortunately the moon had not yet risen, so I was
unable to catch sight of the monster as he approached; I knew, however,
that there was light enough for me to see him when he emerged from the
bushes into the little clearing round the foot of our tree. Nearer and
nearer we heard him coming steadily on, and I had my rifle ready,
pointing it in the direction in which I expected his head to appear.
But, alas, just at that moment the wind veered round and blew straight
from us towards the rhino, who scented us immediately, gave a mighty
snort and then dived madly away through the jungle. For some
considerable time we could hear him crashing ponderously through
everything that came in his way, and he must have gone a long distance
before he recovered from his fright and slowed down to his usual pace.
At any rate we neither heard nor saw anything more of him, and spent a
wakeful and uncomfortable night for nothing.

My next attempt to bag a rhino took place some months later, on the
banks of the Sabaki, and was scarcely more successful. I had come down
from Tsavo in the afternoon, accompanied by Mahina, and finding a
likely tree, within a few yards of the river and with fresh footprints
under it, I at once decided to take up my position for the night in its
branches. Mahina preferred to sit where he could take a comfortable
nap, and wedged himself in a fork of the tree some little way below me,
but still some eight or ten feet from the ground. It was a calm and
perfect night, such as can be seen only in the tropics; everything
looked mysteriously beautiful in the glorious moonlight, and stood out
like a picture looked at through a stereoscope. From my perch among the
branches I watched first a water-buck come to drink in the river; then
a bush-buck; later, a tiny paa emerged from the bushes and paused at
every step with one graceful forefoot poised in the air--thoroughly on
t