The eagle dropped not far from the summit; and the boys, running down to
the spot, found it lying quite dead, with the little klipspringer--also
dead of course--still fast in its claws. The talons sunk deeply into
the flesh, embraced the spine, and even in death the fierce bird had not
relaxed its hold!
Some would have considered the death of the eagle a just punishment;
but, then, what was its crime? It is true, it had killed, and would
have carried away, the little fawn of an innocent antelope--one of the
most harmless of creatures. But what else could it have done? Nature
had taught it to sustain itself in this way. Perhaps it had a nest on
the brow of some beetling precipice--for this vulture-eagle of South
Africa is a dweller upon rocks, and not a _tree-eagle_--perhaps in this
nest it had a pair of downy little eaglets, each with an appetite like
that of an ostrich--perhaps they were expecting that very kid, or some
similar dish, for dinner; and would have been very hungry without it--
might have died of hunger? What, then, could the parent bird do but
provide them, though at the expense of other parents just as much
attached to their offspring as an eagle could be? How can it be
regarded as a crime? The eagle did not wantonly destroy the antelope,
but to satisfy the cravings of hunger. It only obeyed one of the laws
of Nature.
Cruel laws they _do_ seem; yet, if they be crimes, Nature herself is
answerable. Alas! we cannot comprehend, and, I fear, in this life never
will comprehend, why we, the creatures of the earth, are born to prey
upon one another. A puzzle to the humane heart is that "chain of
destruction."
Wanton killing of animals _is_ a crime; and our hunters, at first sight,
might be thought chargeable with this in having _wantonly_ shot down the
eagle. Such was not the case, however. They did not do so out of any
feeling of wantonness. They had a proper object in shooting the bird.
It was the representative of a rare and little-known species, and the
possession of its skin for _scientific purposes_ had something to do
with the fatal aim that brought it down--for it was from the
double-barrel of the naturalist the shot was sent that destroyed it.
By the act the klipspringers had been avenged, though there was little
idea of giving them vengeance in the minds of the young hunters. Quite
the contrary; for in five minutes after, the whole six--buck-dogs and
all--were in full chase after these creatures, as ready to rob them of
their lives as they had been to take away that of their winged enemy.
Nor was it out of wantonness either, or the mere love of hunting, though
that might have been the principal motive with one or two of the party.
But there was a curiosity about these little antelopes, and a desire to
examine them more closely, that urged the young yagers to attempt their
destruction. They desired to possess their trophies.
You may wonder why they should care about the horns of a klipspringer,
since it is not one of the rare antelopes within the boundaries of the
settlements! True, the animal itself is not rare; but it is a rare
occurrence, when one falls before the bullet of the hunter--as the
klipspringer is as shy and wary as the chamois itself--and, dwelling in
the most inaccessible places, it is difficult game to capture. Hence,
the killing of a klipspringer is regarded in the light of a feat, and
its little horns are by no means an ordinary trophy.
The young yagers, therefore, wanted the pair belonging to the buck that
was now leaping over the rocks below.
Some minutes were spent in deliberating as to what would be the best
mode of getting possession of them.
At the report of the guns both the klipspringers had gone farther down
the mountains, and were now standing upon a large boulder near its base.
Hendrik proposed that the party should dash right down after them--dogs
and all--and force them out into the plain, where, it was well known,
they could make but a poor run, and would be easily overtaken by the
buck-dogs.
This plan seemed feasible. The antelopes were very near the base of the
mountain. The hunters coming on them from above could easily drive them
into the plain; and then there would be a run between them and the dogs,
of which a fine view would be obtained.
Off started the whole party, directing their course straight down the
mountain to the point where the klipspringers were seen. The dogs were
set free, and sprang forward in advance.
The hunters moved on as fast as the nature of the ground would permit
them; and in ten minutes would have been near enough to the
klipspringers to have fired, had the latter favoured them by remaining
in their place. But they did not do so. Of course, they had a full
view of their enemies as they advanced; and before the hunters had got
half-way down, the nimble game set off round the bottom of the hill,
flitting from rock to rock like a brace of birds.
What seemed odd in their mode of progressing was, that instead of
running along the open spaces between the fragments of rock, they chose
the rocks themselves for their path, and of these also the most
prominent ones; so that their flight was a succession of bounds, some of
them of enormous length! Many of the boulders, on which they rested a
moment, and from which they sprang again, were so narrow at the top,
that the little creatures hardly obtained room for their feet; and, with
their four hoofs touching each other, they would spring off as though
moved, not by muscular power, but under the influence of some elastic
force!
At first the hunters believed their task to be an easy one. The
mountain surface was of so limited an extent, they would soon surround
the game, or force it out upon the plain. The first attempt to do so,
however, had ended in a failure. The klipspringers had escaped without
difficulty to the other side, and were now farther off than ever!
The hunters called up the dogs, recrossed the summit, and once more set
their eyes upon the game, perched as before upon prominent points.
A second time the party advanced, spreading as they went down, and
holding their guns in readiness; but long before they were within range,
the klipspringers took to flight again; and, just as they had done
before, passed around the base to the other side of the mountain. Of
course, the dogs, scrambling clumsily among the rocks, were, no match
for such game as they; and even had the klipspringers been near enough
for the guns, the most accomplished riflemen could not have "sighted"
them, so quick were their motions. The only chance of the yagers lay in
their shot-guns, and to have hit them, even with these, would have been
a feat equal to the bringing down a snipe or woodcock.
Once more the boys attempted to drive them into the open plain; but with
the same result as before. Although the hunters had spread themselves
across the mountain, the nimble game dashed past them, and escaped to
the other side.
Groot Willem now proposed a new plan. That was for all to descend the
mountain to its base, and there make a complete surround of it. Then
each to march straight up, and, by hemming the game on all sides, _force
them to the summit_.
"In this way," added Groot Willem, "we'll at least have a crack at them;
for if they try to get back through our line, they must pass near some
of us."
Groot Willem's suggestion was adopted. The yagers now descended to the
base of the mountain; and, separating, spread around it at equal
distances from one another. The buck-dogs were also distributed; one
going with each hunter, except Klaas, who had no dog to accompany him.
Since the affair with the blauw-bok, there had been only five in the
pack.
Thus placed, the boys recommenced the ascent. They proceeded with
proper caution, keeping each other in view, and shouting from time to
time words of instruction as to the position of the game. These were
seen bounding before them, from rock to rock--now crossing the mountain
to the opposite side, with the intention of escaping in that way--now
zigzagging along the sides, or bounding upward toward the summit.
When the hunters had advanced about half-way up, the klipspringers
became frightened in earnest. They saw that they were encompassed on
every side; and sprang to and fro like a pair of grasshoppers.
At length they seemed determined to run the gauntlet through the circle
of hunters, and made a bold dash in the direction of Hans. The
naturalist, although not professing to be much of a hunter, was a
capital shot; and, raising his double-barrel, he fired.
The doe fell to the crack; and the buck, suddenly turning as on a pivot,
once more bounded up the slope. The dogs had already gained a distance
ahead of their masters, and now advanced upon the buck from all sides.
There seemed no chance left him of avoiding their onset.
He had mounted a boulder near the base of the tower-rock; and the five
were rushing upon him with open jaws, and shining teeth, when, all at
once, as if impelled by a spring, he shot upward to a narrow ledge of
the vertical rock, far beyond their reach. The ledge was scarcely wide
enough to have given footing to a weasel, and yet the klipspringer
seemed to feel quite secure upon it. But he did not rest there. The
shouts of the hunters, as they hurried up the mountain, impelled him
farther; and springing to a still higher ledge, and to another still
higher, he stood at length upon the pinnacle of the rock!
A shout of surprise broke from the hunters as they witnessed this
wonderful feat. And a singular spectacle it was. As already stated,
the tower-rock ended in a point scarce four inches in diameter; and upon
this stood the klipspringer, his hoofs pressed closely together, his
neck drawn in, his body gathered into a ball, with the stiff wiry hair
radiating on all sides outward, like the spines of a hedgehog--a curious
object to look upon!
Although the hunters were now within shot, so odd did the creature
appear thus placed that not one of them thought of drawing trigger upon
it. They knew that they had the buck in their power--the dogs were all
around him--and at such a height, full thirty feet from the ground, it
could not escape. All therefore held their fire, and ran forward to the
bottom of the tower.
They had made a sad mistake about the powers of that klipspringer. As
they were congratulating themselves on having trapped the buck in so odd
a manner, he was seen to shoot out into the air, and, with a whizzing
noise like that made by some great bird, he passed close to their ears,
and lit upon the boulder from which he had bounded up! Scarce an
instant did he rest there, but sprang to another, and another, and in a
few seconds was far down the side of the mountain!
So sudden had been this movement on the part of the game, and so
unexpected, that both dogs and hunters were taken by surprise, and not a
shot was fired until the klipspringer was beyond reach! Just at that
moment, as they stood watching his retreat, a puff of smoke was noticed
far down the mountain--a gun cracked at the same instant--and the buck
was seen to tumble headlong from a rock!
With fresh surprise the hunters turned to one another. "Who?" exclaimed
all simultaneously. Ha! there were only five of them. One was missing!
"It's Klaas!"
It was Klaas beyond a doubt--Klaas who had killed the klipspringer.
Klaas had given an illustration that the "race is not always to the
swift." He was rather a heavy boy, was Klaas; and feeling fatigued at
so much climbing, had seated himself on a stone, and was taking a bit of
a rest, when he observed the klipspringer, standing upon a rock right
before his face. Having his light fowling-piece loaded with buckshot,
he had taken aim, and dropped the buck from his perch.
Jan was not a little jealous, and insinuated that it was a bit of "luck"
not very well deserved; but whether it was luck or not, Klaas had
certainly killed the klipspringer, and was not a little elated at his
performance.
Having collected the game, the young yagers proceeded to where they had
left their horses; and, mounting, galloped off after the wagons that
were moving slowly across the distant plain.