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In the floor of the pit pointed stakes had been driven, but fortunately Laxdale had fallen between them and thus escaped being impaled. His sole companion was a goat that, left without food and water, was to act as a decoy to the lions. Evidently the pitfall had been recently dug, otherwise the spoor of the beasts would not be visible on both sides of it.
They had simply vanished into thin air, for the native he had sent to inspect the ground beneath the open window had just returned to report that there was no sign of a footstep there, and what sort of creatures were they who could have dropped that distance to the soft turf without leaving spoor? Herr Skopf shuddered.
From the state of his remains we gathered that the raiders must be about two days' march ahead of us. Striking their spoor again on softer ground where the impress of their feet remained at any rate to the cunning sight of Hans we followed them down across great valleys wherein trees grew sparsely, which valleys were separated from each other by ridges of high and barren land.
But their spoor was quite fresh. They were near at hand, and would be certain to return again upon the following night. Von Bloom felt a strong desire to be revenged upon the hideous brutes; and, under other circumstances, would have remained to get a shot at them. But just then that would have been both imprudent and unprofitable work.
We had crossed a high road, and entered the belting of trees again, and along this road the gangers would come, and our spoor was written plain. "There will be the collieshangie when they see our marks in the snaw, but they'll founder their horses on the brae and ill-use time tae nae purpose, if just we get ower the common."
A full hour was spent in finding a track that could, with any certainty, be pronounced that of a giraffe, and this had been made by the animal going in the direction of the sheds. Of course it was the spoor of the camelopards when first led up on the evening before. "Hendrik," exclaimed Willem, nearly frantic with despair; "what shall we do? Those giraffes are somewhere, and must be found."
The traces of ruin he had left behind him, his immense spoor, all seemed to mark him out as one of these fierce creatures. That such existed in that district they already had evidence. Swartboy alleged that the one killed by the rhinoceros was of this class, else he would not have attacked the latter as he had done. There was a good deal of probability in this belief of the Bushman.
Here for the first time they had come upon the startling spoor of man of men and enemies men who were hunting them to slay them, and who now, in these eastern woods, no longer cared for the concealment that might lull to a sense of false security the human quarry that they pursued.
"I am sure," she exclaimed, "that he is a more fervent and pious Christian New-Christian though he be than his accuser." The wistfulness faded from Torquemada's eyes. They grew keen, as became the eyes of an inquisitor, the eyes of a sleuth, quick to fasten on a spoor. But he shook his head. Ojeda advanced. "That I cannot believe," said he.
"Askari him foots, sah!" he reported, holding up three fingers of his right hand to indicate that he had discovered the spoor of three of the German native soldiery. "H'm!" muttered Dudley. "That's rotten news. New spoor, Tarry Barrel?" The Haussa nodded vehemently, and led his officer to the footprints. Examination showed that three natives had been following the spoor of the two naval airmen.
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