done indiscriminately by all settlers whether they have cattle or not. Considering that Big Game shooting parties furnish a good part of the revenue (over L10,000 annually in shooting licences) of British East Africa, and that the country, except for coffee, black wattle and hemp, all of which grow where there is little or no big game, is mostly unsuitable for ranching, the state of things is deplorable. There are many who sneer at Big Game shooting, and are opposed to the slaughter of animals, but if we look upon this sport in a wider sense, in its magnificent opportunities for training the body and developing the best qualities in men of the right stamp, and in the matter of shooting, endurance and the organization of material, we will find that the balance is on the right side. There is, in fact, no outdoor exercise to compare with it, whilst the man who delights in slaughtering large numbers of animals purely for the lust of taking life is extremely rare. FOOTNOTES: [22] "A Hunter's Wanderings," pp. 382-383. [23] "History of the Zulu War," by Miss Colenso and Col. Durnford. [24] Letter to Lady Durand, Jan. 22nd, 1887, from "Story of the Rear Column," p. 31. [25] Mrs. Jones (Miss A. S. Selous), who did the illustrations for his first book, writes to me: "I fear I must own to these illustrations, but at least they were a proof of what my brother was to me--my hero always--I never could have gone through such an ordeal otherwise, for I knew nothing about animals. Still I do not regret them, although the sight of them on the screen was always acutely painful to me! You were his greatest friend, so you will understand." [26] Writing in 1892 Selous says: "As I have lately been accused of slaughtering game for sport, I will take this opportunity of saying that during this journey (Autumn, 1892), though I walked for days amongst innumerable herds of wild animals, I only fired away twelve cartridges from the day I left Salisbury until the date of my return there, and that, as is my usual practice, I never fired a shot except for the purpose of supplying myself and my party with meat." CHAPTER VI 1881-1885