Resuming his journey in the afternoon, Frank Oates now struck across the veldt to the south-east, and crossed the Umgwanya River the following morning, proceeding afterwards a few miles up its banks. At this point he had intended to encamp for a few days; but hearing from two natives who came to the waggon that there were still elephants in the thick bush which had been passed through the day before, he felt tempted to return there; and on the 13th, recrossing the Umgwanya and Gwailo Rivers, in a more direct line than he had taken coming, went back in the direction of the Umvungu. “A boa-constrictor,” he here writes, “six feet six inches long, and as thick as my wrist, lay its length upon the ground, and was skilfully transfixed by one of my boys’ assegais, and pinned to the ground. The lads were evidently afraid of his bite, but the men say that it is harmless.... The Mashonas use these snakes as an article of food.” Next day the spruit which they had outspanned at on the 10th, near the thick elephant bush they were making for, was reached, and here, a short way off the waggon-track, under some remarkably picturesque kopjes, the landscape all budding with the green of spring, a camp was formed, where the party remained about a fortnight hunting. The boys made themselves some snug huts of branches and dry grass to sleep in. Here the Journal again takes up the story:-- “_October 14th._--... Nelson came up to the waggon when we were outspanned. He had not left, but had stopped about near the place where we had outspanned when we first came through the thick bush. He had come on a herd of many (he says forty) elephants, driven six out of the herd, and shot four, but lost two of them--one a large bull. He had killed two bulls. This occurred the day before yesterday. I walked away with him in the evening towards his waggon. We found some nests of amadavats--the little pink ones, I fancy. Some were in course of construction, some finished; all hanging like fruit from a tree. One I took contained two eggs, white speckled with red. Macloule[23] gave me this evening two goatsucker’s eggs he had found, partly sat on. The nest is very slight, and placed on the ground.[24] [Illustration: BIRDS’ NESTS.]