was pretty sure the rule had been made up just that minute.
He was in the back seat with a large, proper-looking Dutchwoman and a Japanese who was handsome enough to be a movie star. The car was a heavy-duty vehicle, a cross between a truck, a jeep and a wagon. They were all slightly crushed together inside and the view from where he was sitting wasnât always good. The photographer seemed to believe they should have been given a convertible or a jeep. Stan, however, had been told inLondon about a member of the television crew whose jeep had been accordioned by some large animalâa rhinoceros or a wild buffalo. And God only knew what an elephant could do to an ordinary car if it concentrated. He was glad they were where they were.
From the beginning it was clear that Carpenter couldnât stand the Frenchwoman. She tried to take loudly snapping pictures into the driverâs face and spent a lot of time complaining, mainly because of dust on the lenses. The Japanese asked about rainfall, herd numbers and so on, but Carpenter had trouble understanding his accent. Stan repeated a few of the questions, paraphrased in order not to offend the Japanese, whose English was grammatically faultless and not, in his opinion, difficult to understand. It occurred to him part way through the morning that Carpenter might suffer from impaired hearing: either an ordinary deafness or one caused by constant exposure to gunfire at close rangeâsomething the army was fussy about, he remembered, because you could sue them if it got worse.
The Dutchwoman said nothing at first. She appeared pleased to be where she was and looked as respectable and dignified as if she were on a church outing. Stan felt there was an unexpressed sympathy between them until about twenty minutes later, after they had gone over some especially bumpy stretches and swallowed quite a lot of dust from a car ahead. She then began to chatter. As he had expected, she seemed to be a very nice woman, but practically impossible to stem. Information about her friends, family, vacations, poured from her. His replies grew quieter and more perfunctory and she became more animated, laughing and chortling. She turned to the Japanese on her other side. All at once he too went intoaction: out came his friends, family, vacations as well. The silent understanding had been there all right, but between the two other people, not between Stan and anyone else.
They stopped several times to see lion, elephant, giraffe. All the animals were immensely far away, almost dots. The Frenchwoman made a big production of her work, getting out of the car and setting up tripods every time they came to a halt. While she was busy, the Japanese explained to the Dutchwoman that a friend of his was a photographer and none of that was really necessary. Carpenter kept an eye on everyone and on the neighbouring countryside. The driver stared ahead during the breaks, his face still and thoughtful except for an occasional ripple of activity along his jaw muscles that showed he was chewing something.
They drove in among zebra and a herd of animals which were larger than ordinary gazelle and had dramatically back-slanted horns. Stan felt caught by the grace of movement as he watched a long outer swale lift itself up from the main body to get out of the way, all its members jumping in accord. The driver was using the car to buzz them. It wasnât blatant and they never left the road completely; nevertheless, that was what he was doing. The herd swerved and an entire wedge-like section of it leapt over to the side in high, far-aiming arcs, right at the three-quarter mark of which the gazelles kicked their hind legs like rabbits. It was fun to see. It also made Stan think about what ability enabled them to wheel and leap together so exactly. It was almost like watching a flock of birds. Men did it too, but only on the parade ground. When heâd gone through his short spell of that, heâd just
He was in the back seat with a large, proper-looking Dutchwoman and a Japanese who was handsome enough to be a movie star. The car was a heavy-duty vehicle, a cross between a truck, a jeep and a wagon. They were all slightly crushed together inside and the view from where he was sitting wasnât always good. The photographer seemed to believe they should have been given a convertible or a jeep. Stan, however, had been told inLondon about a member of the television crew whose jeep had been accordioned by some large animalâa rhinoceros or a wild buffalo. And God only knew what an elephant could do to an ordinary car if it concentrated. He was glad they were where they were.
From the beginning it was clear that Carpenter couldnât stand the Frenchwoman. She tried to take loudly snapping pictures into the driverâs face and spent a lot of time complaining, mainly because of dust on the lenses. The Japanese asked about rainfall, herd numbers and so on, but Carpenter had trouble understanding his accent. Stan repeated a few of the questions, paraphrased in order not to offend the Japanese, whose English was grammatically faultless and not, in his opinion, difficult to understand. It occurred to him part way through the morning that Carpenter might suffer from impaired hearing: either an ordinary deafness or one caused by constant exposure to gunfire at close rangeâsomething the army was fussy about, he remembered, because you could sue them if it got worse.
The Dutchwoman said nothing at first. She appeared pleased to be where she was and looked as respectable and dignified as if she were on a church outing. Stan felt there was an unexpressed sympathy between them until about twenty minutes later, after they had gone over some especially bumpy stretches and swallowed quite a lot of dust from a car ahead. She then began to chatter. As he had expected, she seemed to be a very nice woman, but practically impossible to stem. Information about her friends, family, vacations, poured from her. His replies grew quieter and more perfunctory and she became more animated, laughing and chortling. She turned to the Japanese on her other side. All at once he too went intoaction: out came his friends, family, vacations as well. The silent understanding had been there all right, but between the two other people, not between Stan and anyone else.
They stopped several times to see lion, elephant, giraffe. All the animals were immensely far away, almost dots. The Frenchwoman made a big production of her work, getting out of the car and setting up tripods every time they came to a halt. While she was busy, the Japanese explained to the Dutchwoman that a friend of his was a photographer and none of that was really necessary. Carpenter kept an eye on everyone and on the neighbouring countryside. The driver stared ahead during the breaks, his face still and thoughtful except for an occasional ripple of activity along his jaw muscles that showed he was chewing something.
They drove in among zebra and a herd of animals which were larger than ordinary gazelle and had dramatically back-slanted horns. Stan felt caught by the grace of movement as he watched a long outer swale lift itself up from the main body to get out of the way, all its members jumping in accord. The driver was using the car to buzz them. It wasnât blatant and they never left the road completely; nevertheless, that was what he was doing. The herd swerved and an entire wedge-like section of it leapt over to the side in high, far-aiming arcs, right at the three-quarter mark of which the gazelles kicked their hind legs like rabbits. It was fun to see. It also made Stan think about what ability enabled them to wheel and leap together so exactly. It was almost like watching a flock of birds. Men did it too, but only on the parade ground. When heâd gone through his short spell of that, heâd just
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