He did not answer, but I believe the truth was that he had crept into
a large ant-bear's hole--small blame to him, to be frank. Then the
remainder of our party turned up one by one, some of them looking very
blown, as though they had run a long way. None were missing, except
those who had fired the reeds, and they thought it well to keep clear
for a good many hours. I believe that afterwards they regretted not
having taken a longer leave of absence; but when they finally did
arrive I was in no condition to note what passed between them and their
outraged chief.
Being collected, the question arose what we should do. Of course, I
wished to return to camp and get out of this ill-omened place as soon
as possible. But I had reckoned without the vanity of Umbezi. Umbezi
stretched over the edge of a sharp rock, whither he had been hoisted by
the nose of a buffalo, and imagining himself to be mortally wounded,
was one thing; but Umbezi in a borrowed moocha, although, because of
his bruises, he supported his person with one hand in front and with the
other behind, knowing his injuries to be purely superficial, was quite
another.
"I am a hunter," he said; "I am named 'Eater-up-of-Elephants';" and
he rolled his eyes, looking about for someone to contradict him, which
nobody did. Indeed, his "praiser," a thin, tired-looking person, whose
voice was worn out with his previous exertions, repeated in a feeble
way: "Yes, Black One, 'Eater-up-of-Elephants' is your name;
'Lifted-up-by-Buffalo' is your name."
"Be silent, idiot," roared Umbezi. "As I said, I am a hunter; I have
wounded the wild beast that subsequently dared to assault me. [As a
matter of fact, it was I, Allan Quatermain, who had wounded it.] I would
make it bite the dust, for it cannot be far away. Let us follow it."
He glared round him, whereon his obsequious people, or one of them,
echoed: "Yes, by all means let us follow it, 'Eater-up-of-Elephants.'
Macumazahn, the clever white man, will show us how, for where is the
buffalo that he fears!"
Of course, after this there was nothing else to be done, so, having
summoned the scratched Scowl, who seemed to have no heart in the
business, we started on the spoor of the herd, which was as easy to
track as a wagon road.
"Never mind, Baas," said Scowl, "they are two hours' march off by now."
"I hope so," I answered; but, as it happened, luck was against me, for
before we had covered half a mile some over-zealous fellow struck a
blood spoor.
I marched on that spoor for twenty minutes or so, till we came to a
patch of bush that sloped downwards to a river-bed. Right to this river
I followed it, till I reached the edge of a big pool that was still full
of water, although the river itself had gone dry. Here I stood looking
at the spoor and consulting with Saduko as to whether the beast could
have swum the pool, for the tracks that went to its very verge had
become confused and uncertain. Suddenly our doubts were ended, since
out of a patch of dense bush which we had passed--for it had played the
common trick of doubling back on its own spoor--appeared the buffalo, a
huge bull, that halted on three legs, my bullet having broken one of its
thighs. As to its identity there was no doubt, since on, or rather from,
its right horn, which was cleft apart at the top, hung the remains of
Umbezi's moocha.