nce, the order was given once
more to trek.

"But where's Dinny?" cried Mr Rogers; "surely we have not left him
behind."

"No, sor," said a whining voice; "shure I was putting things a bit
sthrait in the waggon. Are we safe across the wather yet?"

"Safe?" cried Dick contemptuously; "no! not a bit. Look out, Dinny, or
we shall have one of the crocodiles pursuing us on horseback on purpose
to have a snap at you."

"Shure an' ye's joking," said Dinny thrusting his head out of the back
of the waggon; "and maybe he'd prefer you, Masther Dick, as being
tinderer to his teeth and more gintale."

The journey during the next few days was more laborious than
interesting. It was intensely hot; water was scarce, so was pasture;
and but for the wise provision of the couple of goodly-sized tubs strung
behind the waggon, there would have been a great deal of suffering.
Nobody knew the position of those tubs better than Pompey, Caesar, and
Crassus, unless it was Rough'un, for no sooner did they become thirsty,
and fail to discover water, than they took their places behind the
waggon and watched the barrels, "dhrinking 'em dhry wid their eyes," so
Dinny said, and barking loudly whenever a drop was drawn.

The plains they crossed seemed to be endless, so did the herds of
various kinds of game; and one evening the party separated in search of
something for the larder, which had become low.

The General went in one direction with Dick, Mr Rogers went in another
with Chicory, and in a very independent spirit Jack shouldered his
rifle, and went off by himself to see what he could bring down.

About a mile from the bank he came upon what promised to be a capital
place for stalking one or other of the herds grazing on the plain,
namely, the bed of a nearly dried-up river, dotted with pools of water,
one which had cut its way in stormy seasons through the rocky soil,
leaving on either side a steep well-marked bank of about four feet high.

The bed of the little river was dotted with tall clumps of
feathery-flowered grass, which with the bank would form excellent cover,
so that the hunter could go for miles either way in a natural trench,
towards whose water pools the antelopes would most probably graze.

It was a great advantage, but the place had its disadvantages as well,
and Jack found them out before long.

At first he started full of hope, congratulating himself on the fact
that he had on his high riding-boots, and could wa