And there our travels for a time ended, for it transpired that we were fated to lie in Moschi for a month and a half while it rained incessantly. The first trek was over, a trek that, since crossing the frontier, had entailed, for our column, a march of some 148 miles. [Illustration: ADVANCE FROM FRONTIER TO MOROGORO] CHAPTER V THE SECOND TREK On 14th May, 1916, I received orders to take the entire transport from Kibosho, west of Moschi, back to Mbuyuni, on the Taveta side, where the column was rapidly outfitting for another advance. The rains were over. Our rest at Moschi was at an end. After a few days’ hurried preparation we marched out from Mbuyuni in the afternoon of the 18th of May, and continued on the way all through the night. It was a memorable march. I happened to be temporarily in charge of battalion transport, and had to set out with a batch of “green” mules which had been allotted to me on the previous day, and some of which had never had a saddle on. All through the trek it was incessantly a case of chasing escaped mules across country, repairing broken harness, and resaddling the rearing, frightened, stubborn brutes. I, and my comrades, spent the whole night on horseback, rounding up runaways, on the outskirts of the column, and we had our hands full. During our labours, four mules were completely lost in the dark; they had been either overrun and left far behind, or they had been caught by others. However, we got into camp in the end with two over our complement, for others had experienced the same difficulties as ourselves all along the column; and when in a tight corner, there is a popular old army maxim which says that “the Lord helps those that help themselves.” So we had helped ourselves, when we found stray animals without an owner. This first day out was the worst, in dealing with the transport animals, and very soon hard work and experience had won them all over to steady-going patient beasts of burden. The column marched in stages from Mbuyuni to Taveta, from Taveta to Himo River, and from Himo River to Kahe; the battle-field of the 21st of March, and the line at which operations ceased when the rains overtook us. From Mbuyuni to Kahe was a trek of forty-two miles, and it was accomplished in three days, which was good going for a burdened column over bad roads. [Sidenote: OFF DOWN THE PANGANI RIVER]