As already stated, there were seven antelopes in the herd. One, an old
buck, larger than any of the rest, and having horns over three feet
long, was in the advance acting as leader. When first observed, they
were approaching the grove of mokhalas--perhaps to reach the water by
the spring. So thought the yagers, and held a hurried consultation
about it, as they watched the advance of the animals. Hurried it was,
and abruptly terminated, for before they could come to any definite plan
of action, one of the buck-dogs, a young and half-trained animal, sprang
forward out of cover, and opened his bay right in the faces of the
antelopes.
The whole seven wheeled round in their tracks, and obedient to a
snorting signal of the leader, started back in the direction they had
come, going at top speed.
Of course all idea of stratagem was foiled by the unexpected behaviour
of the dog. A straight tail-on-end chase was the only course left the
hunters to follow; and, plying the spur, all the six shot out of the
timber, and rode "view halloo" over the open plain.
A splendid chase it was for several minutes--the seven blue-bucks in
advance, the dogs in the middle, and the "field" following in the rear.
A splendid chase, indeed!
But only for a few minutes did dogs, hunters, and game, maintain these
relative positions. The horsemen spread first. The ponies of Klaas and
Jan fell to the rear, and were soon distanced. Then lagged the
philosopher Hans, whose cob, though steady under fire, and a good
roadster, was no hunter; and, next, the handsome Arend,--who might have
taken a better place, for his steed was a good one. But Arend cared but
little for hunting, and less for hard riding under a hot sun; and having
permitted himself to get so far behind that the view of the chase was no
longer interesting, he reined up under the shade of a cameel-doorn, and
commenced fanning himself with the gauntlet of his military glove!
There were two, however, who still rode to the dogs with the keen ardour
of sportsmen--Hendrik and Groot Willem; and from a feeling of rivalry,
as already hinted at, each was determined to be in at the death.
Both were well mounted, though very dissimilarly. The horse that
Hendrik rode was a beautiful coal-black, of medium size, with a dash of
the Arab in him--just enough to make of him what is termed a "hunter,"--
a breed the finest in the world, and for all purposes, except
_race-course gambling_, finer even than the Arabian itself.
Groot Willem's horse differed widely from this kind; and the same
description that has been given of Groot Willem, or one very similar,
would answer for his steed.
In size, he bore the same proportion to Hendrik's hunter that his rider
bore to Hendrik--that is, he was a full half bigger; but his own members
were out of all proportion with each other.
His body was flat and gaunt, and his limbs long and bony. His neck also
was of an immense length, without the slightest semblance of a curve;
and his head was angular and "bumpy," like that of a giraffe. He had
other points of similarity to this singular quadruped, in his rough
awkward gait, and long-stumped thin-haired tail; and the young yagers,
in view of these resemblances, had jocosely christened him
"Groot-Kameel," (Great Camel). He was about as ugly a horse as could
have been found in all the land of the boors; and yet his owner, Groot
Willem, would not have exchanged him for the handsomest horse in Africa.
Notwithstanding his ugliness, he was a good horse. In jockey phrase, "a
bad 'un to look at, a good 'un to go." Groot Willem was no man for
appearances. He liked performance better than promise; and the "Great
Camel" was the type of that idea--he promised nothing, but performed
amazingly. Many a quagga, and wildebeest and sassybe, had he ridden
down; many a stanch buck-dog had he tired out and passed in the chase
with the heavy weight of Groot Willem on his back. No wonder the latter
felt a high regard for his well-trained hunting horse.
Hendrik had an equal affection for his beautiful black; and as no
opportunity had yet offered of a fair trial between the two steeds, a
good deal of talk had passed about their respective merits as regarded
speed and "bottom." On the question of beauty nothing could be said.
Hendrik had the advantage there; and even Groot Willem acknowledged it,
at the same time that he sneered at _that_ being considered a "merit" in
a horse.
The chase of the blauw-boks seemed to offer the chance of a fair trial.
The animals had taken across the open plain, which would lead the
hunters several miles at least, as the game was not one to be run down
in a hurry. In a ride like that before them, it would be seen which
backed the best steed.
Both riders were determined to make the most of their horses. Both were
wary hunters, and, instead of dashing forward at break-neck speed, it
could be seen that each was "going cunning," and saving their steeds for
the final burst. Hendrik felt that in speed for a mile or two he could
have headed the "Camel" easily enough. But the bucks had got a good
start, and it was not likely he could overtake them within that
distance. He held up, therefore, riding gently, lest in the end the
great horse of his rival might come out too strong for him.
For some distance the two galloped "cheek by jowl," the dogs far in the
advance, and the bucks still running together before them. The latter
did not seek to escape into the bushes, though they passed near several
large copses. They kept in the open plain, in a course nearly direct.
Stag-like they were running for some water--as antelopes of the
_aigocerine_ group habitually do.
But the dogs did not husband their speed, some of them were young and
foolish, although very swift; and before the bucks had passed over a
mile of ground, two or three of their canine pursuers pushed them so
closely that the herd broke, and the antelopes, in their terror, forsook
each other, and ran wildly in various directions.
The character of the hunt was now quite altered. The pack split up just
as the game had done, each dog following the antelope that seemed
nearest him, and in a few moments the chase was scattered all over the
plain.
The two hunters had now a choice, whether each should pursue a separate
game, or both take after the same. But neither thought for a moment of
separating from the other, except by _heading_ him. The spirit of
rivalry, though silent, was strongly felt by both. Even the very horses
seemed to be actuated by a similar feeling, eyeing each other askance,
as they galloped side by side!
The antelope that both were determined to follow was easily selected
from the rest. The old buck that hitherto led the herd had now gone off
by himself, followed by a pair of the stanchest dogs. _His_ horns were
the meteors that gleamed in the _eyes_ of our hunters, and beckoned them
on.
Without exchanging a word with each other, both rode after the buck.