h the arrow, and as the serpent
uncoiled himself to attack the men, Rutuana fell down. The serpent was
soon speared, and the boy was carried home. I think that boy will
become a great warrior.

At the next village the peasants were much disturbed by a multitude of
snakes which had collected there for some reason. They had seen several
long black snakes which had taken lodging in the anthills. These had
already killed five cows, and lately had taken to attacking the
travellers along the road that leads by the anthills, when an Arab,
named Massoudi, hearing of their trouble, undertook to kill them. He
had some slaves with him, and he clothed their legs with buffalo hide,
and placed cooking-pots on their heads, and told them to go among the
anthills. When the snakes came out of their holes he shot them one by
one. Among the reptiles he killed were three kinds of serpents which
possessed horns. The peasants skinned them, and made bags of them to
preserve their charms. One kind of horned snake, very thick and short,
is said to lay eggs as large as those of fowls. The _mubarasassa_,
which is of a greyish colour, is also said to be able to kill elephants.

I then went to Kyengi, beyond Singo, and the peasants, on coming to
gossip with me, rather upset me with terrible stories of the mischief
done by a big black leopard. It seems that he had first killed a woman,
and had carried the body into the bush; and another time had killed two
men while they were setting their nets for some small ground game. Then
a native hunter, under promise of reward from the chief, set out with
two spears to kill him. He did not succeed, but he said that he saw a
strange sight. As he was following the track of the leopard, he
suddenly came to a little jungle, with an open space in the middle. A
large wild sow, followed by her litter of little pigs, was rooting
about, and grunting as pigs do, when he saw the monstrous black leopard
crawl towards one of the pigs. Then there was a shrill squeal from a
piggie, and the mother, looking up, discovered its danger, at which it
furiously charged the leopard, clashing her tusks and foaming at the
mouth. The leopard turned sharp round, and sprang up a tree. The sow
tried to jump up after it, but being unable to reach her enemy in that
way, she set about working hard at the roots. While she was busy about
it the peasant ran back to obtain a net and assistants, and to get his
hunting-dog. Whe