a mere
accident that they did so, and owing to the nature of the ground; but
such was the case, and Von Bloom had observed it on several occasions.
They were accustomed to enter by the gorge, already described; and,
after drinking, wade along the shallow edge for some yards, and then
pass out by another break in the bank.

The knowledge of this fact was of the utmost importance, and all saw
that at once. A pit-fall dug upon the path by which the animals entered
the lake, would no doubt operate as Hendrik said--one might be caught,
and all the rest frightened off. But a similar trap placed upon the
trail that led outward, would bring about a very different result. Once
the quaggas had finished drinking, and just at the moment they were
heading out of the water, the hunters could show themselves upon the
opposite side, set the troop in quick motion, and gallop them into the
trap. By this means not only one, but a whole pit-full might be captured
at once!

All this appeared so feasible that not another suggestion was
offered--the plan of the pit-fall was at once, and unanimously adopted.

It remained only to dig the pit, cover it properly, and then wait the
result.

During all the time their capture was being planned, the herd of quaggas
had remained in sight, disporting themselves upon the open plain. It was
a tantalizing sight to Hendrik, who would have liked much to have shown
his marksman skill by "creasing" one. But the young hunter saw that it
would be imprudent to fire at them there, as it would prevent them from
returning to the vley; so he restrained himself, and along with the
others remained watching the quaggas--all regarding them with a degree
of interest which they had never before felt in looking at a drove of
these animals.

The quaggas saw nothing of them, although quite near to the great
nwana-tree. They--the hunters--were up among the branches, where the
animals did not think of looking, and there was nothing around the
bottom of the tree to cause them alarm. The wagon-wheels had long ago
been disposed of in the bush, partly to shelter them from the sun, and
partly because game animals frequently came within shot of the tree, and
were thus obtained without any trouble. There were scarce any traces
upon the ground that would have betrayed the existence of a "camp" in
the tree; and a person might have passed very near without noticing the
odd aerial dwelling of the hunter family.

All this was des