Page:Lake Ngami.djvu/410

CHAPTER XXXII.

Timbo's Return from the Lake; his Logic; he takes the Law in his own Hands.—Calf of Author's Leg goes astray.—A troop of Elephants.—Author is charged by one of them, and narrowly escapes Death.—He shoots a white Rhinoceros.—He disables a black Rhinoceros.—He is charged and desperately bruised and wounded by the latter.—He saves the Life of his Attendant, Kamapyu.—Author again charged by the Rhinoceros, and escapes Destruction only by the opportune Death of his Antagonist.—Reflections.—He starts for the Ngami.

After about a week's absence Timbo returned. I learned from him that, previously to his arrival at the Ngami, Lecholètébè, the chief, had not, contrary to my expectations, been made aware of my approach, and the sudden appearance of strangers, therefore, created no small degree of surprise and consternation both to him and his people, who fled precipitately with their flocks.

Many years before, when my friends, the Damaras, extended their migration to the neighborhood of the lake in question, the Bechuanas were in the habit of robbing them of their cattle. "How does it happen," said Lecholètébè to Timbo, "that the Damaras are your servants? They are a mighty nation, rich in cattle, which I know well, because my father fought many a bloody battle with them. We invariably came off victorious, though often at the cost of numbers of our warriors, who were slain by the broad assegai of the Damaras. All is not right! Is your master richer than they?"

To this query Timbo logically replied, "No, my master no rich; master very poor; but master has something, and Damaras nothing; therefore master more rich than Damaras."

Timbo then explained the way in which that tribe had