lovely cattle, fat sleek and in beautiful condition, and their dogs were well fed and they used them to catch Lechwe, an antelope which you get in huge herds in that area. On the way here I had seen at night several large crocodile eyes on route but I decided that they would have to wait as there was nothing I could do for a month or so until the water levels receded. It was now the middle of June so I decided to go to Johannesburg for a rest. So I sold my car and with the money I completely restocked and re-equipped my stores. I bought 27galls of petrol, oil for the engine, salt food and everything I thought necessary which I then left in my camp at the village so the boys could look after it together with my boat and engine. There was another rather effeminate boy a friend of Goodrich who liked helping and who I did not really care for but who was company for Goodrich who was an excellent skinner. Anyway once to camp and stores were all set up I packed a case went into Kafue and got a lif to Southern Rhodesia and from there another lift to Jo’burg. I had sent all my skins to an agent in Souther Rhodesia and asked him to forward the money on to me in Jo’burg but he never did. So in the meantime I took about £30 with me and reached Jo’burg feeling oon top of the world. All the time I had been on the river over the past two months I had not shaved and had grown a great big beard and moustache which made me look more like a baboon than a human being. But although pretty well bust I was feeling fit healthy and on top of the world and I had great ideas for croc hunting now that I had gained some experience. In fact I felt I could really make money by shooting 5 or 6 crocs a day which would give me an income of about £25 per day. However I felt that I was doing everything on my own and I really needed someone to help organise my supplies, permits etc and to organise me too. In fact what I really needed was a wife , who was educated and could rough it with a spirit of adventure, but to keep all options open for companionship I put an advert in the paper :
“Are you bored? Wonderful opportunity for a young unattached male or female in Central Africa, open air life, must have courage resourcefulness, loyalty and Initiative... Please apply stating age and weight”
I didn’t want anyone too heavy that would overload the boat and I did want someone to help with the office work and administration. It was quite amazing the dozens upon dozens of replies that I got mostly from mixed up young romantic girls who had broken love affairs..but there was one guy who wrote an outstanding letter and his name was Bob Crisp. I met him and was most impressed as he had been in tanks during the war, was well decorated and an ex Rugby Blue and was now doing a Sports Review with the South African Broadcasting Corp. He was interested in my life in the bush and wanted me to do a series of radio talks of about 15 minutes for which they would pay me £15 a time for the English programme and an equal sum if it were translated into Africaans.....so I started going to the public library in J’burg to look up the exact scientific facts on game and in particular elephants. One day in the library I had a collection of all the elephant books when the librarian came and asked if another young lady could share one of them . She turned out to be the secretary of the Wild Life Protection Association of South Africa and her name was Penelope Seaman.