was not a reassuring business, for scouts might be in the vicinity,
and a scout unseen is a far greater menace than one who incautiously
betrays his presence.

Following the course of a donga he found that the narrow valley formed
an admirable means for a column to advance if protected by flankers,
but after tracing it for the best part of two miles Wilmshurst
discovered that it terminated abruptly, merging into a vast open plain.

Cautiously the subaltern crept up the sloping face of the donga until
his head was just above the edge of the level ground. By the aid of
the glasses he made a prolonged and cautious survey. Eight hundred
yards on his right front were swarms of vultures busily engaged in
their revolting pastime; at a similar distance on the left were four
_springbok_ grazing unconcernedly. Both signs tended to prove that
there were no human beings about, for in the case of the _springbok_
their keen scent enabled them to detect the presence of the hunter to
such an extent that it was a difficult matter to get within easy range
of them.

Having taken a series of compass bearings and entered a few details on
his map Wilmshurst started off for a kopje midway between the
_aasvogels_ and the _springbok_. Although he took the greatest pains
to keep out of sight the nimble quadrupeds suddenly bolted, flying like
the wind. A few seconds later the vultures rose from their interrupted
repast, flying almost immediately over the prone form of the subaltern.

"Fishy--very," mused Wilmshurst. "What made the _aasvogels_ fly this
way? I'll sit tight and await developments."

For the best part of half an hour he remained perfectly quiet, not even
risking to use his binoculars, lest the reflected light might attract
the attention of a hostile scout. By this time the storm was drawing
nearer--slowly but surely. As yet no rain had fallen. There were the
indigo-coloured clouds ahead; behind the sky was one unbroken expanse
of dirty yellow haze. It reminded Wilmshurst of the efforts of an
amateur painter trying to "lay on" a coat of yellow paint with a
tar-stained brush. Far away to the north came the reverberations of a
peal of thunder. It was Nature's signal to the wary to take cover.

Finding at the end of thirty minutes that nothing happened to indicate
the presence of an enemy, for the _aasvogels_ had returned to their
carrion feast, Wilmshurst essayed the remaining portion of his
interrupted advance. The