nto
camp on the edge of a great swamp, or _tinga-tinga_, as the natives
call it, only a couple of hours' march from the river. Many fresh
elephant trails had been discovered, and the swamp itself looked like a
most promising place for lions. A great tree stood on one side of the
swamp, and in its branches was a platform which an Englishman had
occupied seven nights in a vain quest for lions some time before. A
little grass shelter was below the tree, and as we approached a
Wanderobo darted out and ran in terror from us. The Wanderobos are
native hunters who live in the forests, and are as shy as wild animals.
So we could not question him as to Colonel Roosevelt's camp. Later in
the afternoon a native runner appeared from the direction of Sergoi with
a message to the colonel, but he didn't know where the camp was and
didn't seem to be in any great hurry to find out. He calmly made himself
the guest of one of our porters and spent the night in our camp, doing
much more sitting than running.

On the morning of the fourteenth we marched toward the river, two hours
away, the native runner slowly ambling along with us. We had been on the
trail about an hour and a half when a shot was heard off to our left; At
first we thought it was our Spanish friends, but a few moments later we
came to a point where we could see, about a mile away, a long string of
porters winding along in the direction from which we came, it was
plainly a much larger _safari_ than the Spanish one, and we at once
concluded that it was Colonel Roosevelt's.

Three or four men on horses were visible, but could not be recognized
with our glasses. The number corresponded to the colonel's party,
however, which we knew to consist of himself and Kermit, Edmund Heller
and Leslie Tarlton. A messenger was sent across the hills to establish
their identity and we marched on to the river, a half-hour farther,
where we found the smoldering fires of their camp.

A transport wagon of supplies for the Duke of Penaranda's _safari_ was
also there, and from the drivers it was definitely learned that the late
occupants of the camp were Mr. Roosevelt and his party. In the meantime
the messenger had reached Colonel Roosevelt, and when the latter learned
that Mr. Akeley's _safari_ was in the vicinity he at once ordered camp
pitched forty-five minutes from our camp, and started across to see
Akeley. The latter had also started across to see the colonel, and they
met on the way. A