But we saw no elephants.

We scanned the hills for miles and tramped for days in ideal elephant country, but our quest was all in vain.

Then our food supplies ran low, our last bullock was killed, and we hurried back to the base camp on the river, a hungry, tired band of a hundred and twenty men.
The matter of provisioning a large number of porters far from the railroad is a serious one.

In addition to carrying the _safari_ outfit, the porters must carry their _posho_, or cornmeal ration, and it is impossible for them to carry more than a limited number of days' rations.

So the farther one gets from the base of supplies the more difficult it is to move, and a relay system must be employed.