Indian variety distinguished by the thick folds of heavy garment-like
skin, which hang from his shoulders, haunches and thighs, has been
trained to exercise the same quiet patience which distinguishes the
elephant. The paroxysms of rage which Mr. Gordon Cumming describes the
African variety as venting upon a harmless bush, or employing in tearing
up the earth, have been known to seize those specimens which have been
imported into England, as the following account of the rhinoceros,
exhibited at Exeter Change, published in the "Philosophical Transactions
for 1822," will show. "This animal about a month after it came,
endeavoured to kill the keeper, and nearly succeeded. It ran at him with
the greatest impetuosity, but, fortunately, the horn passed between his
thighs, and threw the keeper on its head; the horn came against a wooden
partition, into which the animal forced it to such a depth as to be
unable for a minute to withdraw it, and, during this interval, the man
escaped. Frequently, (more especially in the middle of the night), fits
of frenzy came on; and, while these lasted, nothing could control its
rage, the rhinoceros running with great swiftness round the den, playing
all kinds of antics, making hideous noises, knocking everything to
pieces, disturbing the whole neighbourhood, and then, all at once,
becoming quiet. While the fit was on, even the keeper durst not make his
approach. The animal fell upon its knee to enable the horn to be borne
upon any object. It was quick in all its motions, ate voraciously all
kinds of vegetables, appearing to have no selection. They fed it on
branches of willow. Three years' confinement made no alteration in its
habits." The rhinoceros is said to live for a hundred years.
The Hippopotamus.
The Hippopotamus introduces the second sub-order of the hoofed animals,
the _Artiodactyla_, animals having an even number of toes. There is but
one genus of the Hippopotamus and two species, the Hippopotamus of the
great rivers of Southern Africa, and the Liberian Hippopotamus of the
West. The Hippopotamus is gregarious, congregating in the deep shady
pools and on the sandy banks of the shallow rivers of its native land.
It attains to ten or eleven feet in length, and to five feet, or more,
in height, being the next largest animal to the rhinoceros and the
elephant. He is a powerful beast and has been known to attack and
capsize boats, though when hunted he usually sinks to the bottom of the
river where he is able to remain five or six minutes without rising to
the surface for breath. The form of his head enables him to lift his
eyes and his nostrils above the water at the same time without exposing
more than a slight portion of his head. Thus, while taking in breath to
sustain him while out of the reach of his enemies, he can watch their
movements and determine his course below. His hide is very thick and
strong and is, therefore, very useful for a variety of purposes, while
his tusks furnish the dentist with the material to supply human
deficiencies.
The Haunt of the Hippopotami.
Mr. Gordon Cumming gives the following vivid description of the haunt of
the Hippopotami. "The next day I rode down the river to seek sea-cows,
taking as usual my double-barrelled rifles. We had proceeded about two
miles when we came upon some most thoroughly beaten, old established
hippopotamus paths, and presently, in a broad, long, deep, and shaded
pool of the river, we heard the sea-cows bellowing. There I beheld one
of the most wondrous and interesting sights that a sportsman can be
blessed with. I at once knew that there must be an immense herd of them,
for the voices came from the different parts of the pool; so creeping in
through the bushes to obtain an inspection, a large sandy Island
appeared at the neck of the pool, on which stood several large shady
trees. The neck of the pool was very wide and shallow, with rocks and
large stones; below, it was deep and still. On a sandy promontory of
this Island stood about thirty cows and calves, whilst in the pool
opposite, and a little below them, stood about twenty more sea-cows,
with their heads and backs above water. About fifty yards further down
the river again, showing out their heads, were eight or ten immense
fellows, which I think were all bulls; and about one hundred yards below
these in the middle of the stream stood another herd of about eight or
ten cows with calves and two huge bulls. The sea-cows lay close together
like pigs; a favourite position was to rest their heads on their
comrade's sterns and sides. The herds were attended by an immense number
of the invariable rhinoceros birds, which on observing me did their best
to spread alarm throughout the hippopotami. I was resolved to select, if
possible, a first-rate old bull out of this vast herd, and I accordingly
delayed firing for nearly two hours, continually running up and down
behind the thick thorny cover, attentively studying the heads. At length
I determined to go close in and select the best head out of the eight or
ten bulls which lay below the cows. I accordingly left the cover, and
walked slowly forward in full view of the whole herd to the water's
edge, where I lay down on my belly and studied the heads of these bulls.
The cows on seeing me splashed into the water and kept up a continual
snorting and blowing till night set in. After selecting for a few
minutes I fired my first shot at a splendid bull and sent the ball in a
little behind the eye. He was at once incapacitated, and kept plunging
and swimming round and round, wearing away down the pool, until I
finished him with two more shots."
The Pig Family.
Pigs, hogs and peccaries form the next family with which we have to
deal. The Wild Boar which we may take first, is famous in classic
history and European legends, and is celebrated both by ancient and
modern poets. He is, or was common to Europe, Asia and Africa, and
whether in the hunt or the banquet has always been highly esteemed. The
boar hunt is an exciting chase, having all the elements of danger
necessary to give it zest. Boars have been known to kill not only dogs,
but horses and men with their powerful tusks, turning and rending them
with great strength and ferocity. When in a wild state the boar is a
dangerous and inconvenient neighbour, for he commits serious
depredations upon the property of the peasant and the farmer. Bruce in
his travels gives an illustration of this. He says: "We pitched our tent
in a small plain by the banks of a quick clear running stream; the spot
is called Mai-Shum. A peasant had made a very neat little garden, on
both sides of the rivulet, in which he had sown abundance of onions and
garlic, and he had a species of pumpkin which I thought was little
inferior to a melon. This man guessed by our arms and our horses that we
were hunters, and he brought us a present of the fruits of his garden,
and begged our assistance against a number of wild boars, which carried
havoc and desolation through all his labours, marks of which were,
indeed, too visible everywhere.--Amongst us all we killed five boars,
all large ones, in the space of about two hours; one of which measured
six feet nine inches; and though he ran at an amazing speed near two
miles, so as to be with difficulty overtaken by the horse, and was
struck through and through with two heavy lances loaded at the end with
iron, no person dared to come near him on foot, and he defended himself
above half an hour, till having no other arms left, I shot him with a
horse-pistol." The tusks of the wild boar are often a foot in length and
his hide is so tough that small bullets have been found between the skin
and the flesh of captured specimens.
The Common Hog.
Authorities differ as to whether the domestic pig is derived from the
wild species or not, but certain it is that the domestic hog under
suitable circumstances, betrays wild instincts. Hogs have been known to
hunt rabbits and poultry and attack lambs when temporarily free from
restraint, and instances have been recorded in which the hog has
attacked and killed its keeper. The hog grows to a great size, the
measurements of one belonging to Mr. Lunton of Bodmain some years ago
being nine feet in length and seven feet five inches in girth. Its
weight was eight hundred and fifteen pounds. These limits have, however,
often been exceeded, a hog bred in Cheshire measuring nine feet eight
inches including tail, and standing four feet six inches in height. This
animal weighed 1,215 pounds when killed. Hampshire, Wiltshire,
Berkshire, and Yorkshire have all fine breeds which supply the larders
of the United Kingdom with prime bacon. The sucking pig has been deemed
a dainty dish even from Roman times. The babiroussa belongs to Bouru and
Celebes, and is gregarious. Its habits are similar to those of the wild
hog, which the male rivals and even surpasses in size. It has tusks
attached to both the upper and the lower jaw, which bend backwards with
a graceful curve.
The Peccary.
The Peccary belongs to South America where it is indigenous. There are
two species, the Collared Peccary and the White-lipped Peccary. The
collared peccary is a timid, inoffensive animal about three feet long,
and distinguished by white bands which traverse the shoulders and meet
at the neck. They associate in pairs or small families and live in holes
and hollows. The white-lipped peccary herds in large numbers, migrating
apparently in regular order in companies sometimes a thousand strong.
These animals are very fierce when attacked, and the hunter has little
chance of escaping them unless he can find shelter in a friendly tree.
Many stories are told of hunters who have sought such asylum, and who
have been kept treed many hours by peccaries who, regardless of the
mortality of their comrades, have lingered round the trunk.
The Camel and the Dromedary.
The history of the Camel carries us back to the age of the great
patriarchs, and gives him some claim to be regarded as a patriarch
himself. He belongs to Egypt and Arabia, where he is indispensable to
the desert ranger, and where no longer found in a wild state, he takes
rank as a domestic animal. His uses are several. As a beast of burden he
is invaluable, while the milk of the female serves as an article of
food, the surplus wool of his body as a material for rough woven cloth
and his dung as excellent fuel. He is said by some to be docile and
affectionate and by others to be dull and stupid, though harbouring the
spirit of revenge. Probably like many other animals he will be found to
reciprocate the treatment he receives in kindness as well as in cruelty.
Some confusion exists in the popular mind as to distinctions between the
Camel and the Dromedary, the number of the humps being said to
differentiate the two. With regard to this Mr. Palgrave in his "Travels
in Central and Eastern Arabia", says:--"The camel and the dromedary in
Arabia are the same identical genus and creature, excepting that the
dromedary is a high-bred camel, and the camel a low-bred dromedary;
exactly the distinction which exists between a race-horse and a hack;
both are horses, but the one of blood and the other not. The dromedary
is the race horse of this species, thin, elegant, (or comparatively so)
fine haired, light of step, easy of pace, and much more enduring of
thirst than the woolly, thick-built, heavy-footed, ungainly and jolting
camel. But both and each of them have only one hump, placed immediately
behind their shoulders, where it serves as a fixing point for the saddle
or burden. For the two humped beast--it exists, indeed, but it is
neither an Arab dromedary nor camel; it belongs to the Persian breed
called by the Arabs 'Bakhtee' or Bactrian."
The Strength and Endurance of the Camel.
Like all animals in their native lands the camel shows remarkable
adaptation to his environment. Water is scarce in the desert, so the
ship of the desert, as he has been poetically called, is provided with a
capacity for the storage of the precious fluid and is able to take in a
several days' supply at one time. The camel is said to drink "fifty,
sixty, or even a hundred pounds' weight" of water at one time, and then
to go for three or four days without a fresh supply. Again food is
scarce in the desert, and the herbage of a very coarse kind, but the
camel is able to do with remarkably little food, if his size and the
weight of his burden are taken into consideration, and he will browse
contentedly upon such food as he finds by the wayside, supplemented by
"a cake of barley, a few dates, or beans" from the hands of his master.
"They are particularly fond," says a writer in "Tales of Animals", "of
those vegetable productions, which other animals would never touch, such
as plants which are like spears and daggers, in comparison with the
needles of the thistle, and which often pierce the incautious
traveller's boot." A camel can be purchased in Egypt for from thirty to
fifty dollars, though the high bred dromedary will fetch a very much
larger sum. The camel will carry from five hundred to eight hundred
pounds' weight, but will not stir if loaded beyond his strength. He
travels at a uniform rate of three miles an hour, but will keep on at
that rate for ten or twelve hours. The dromedary attains to a speed
which the Arab compares to the speed of the wind.
The Camel and his Master.
Mr. Macfarlane says, "I have been told that the Arabs will kiss their
Camels in gratitude and affection, after a journey across the desert. I
never saw the Turks either of Asia-Minor or Roumelia, carry their
kindness so far as this; but I have frequently seen them pat their
Camels when the day's work was done, and talk to them on their journey,
as if to cheer them. The Camels appeared to me quite as sensible to
favour and gentle treatment as a good bred horse is. I have seen them
curve and twist their long lithe necks as their driver approached, and
often put down their tranquil heads towards his shoulder. Near Smyrna,
and at Magnesia and Sardes, I have occasionally seen a Camel follow his
master like a pet dog, and go down on his knees before him, as if
inviting him to mount. I never saw a Turk ill use the useful, gentle,
amiable quadruped. But I have frequently seen him give it a portion of
his own dinner, when, in unfavourable places, it had nothing but
chopped straw to eat. I have sometimes seen the drivers on a hot day, or
in passing a dry district, spirt a little water in the Camel's nostrils;
they pretend it refreshes them."
Camel Riding.
Camel riding is evidently an exercise which needs getting used to. Mrs.
Bowdich says: "High saddles are placed on their backs; and it requires
either to be used to them, or to be particularly careful, not to be
half-killed at starting. The rider places himself in the saddle while
the animals are kneeling; and when they raise their hind-legs, which
they do first of all, they send the unprepared traveller forwards, and
his breath is almost taken out of him by the blow which he receives upon
his chest; then as they get upon their fore-legs they throw him back, so
as to endanger his spine. Their pace is at first very disagreeable,
being so long and slouching."
Captain Riley describes his experiences as follows: "They placed me on
the largest Camel I had yet seen, which was nine or ten feet in height.
The Camels were now all kneeling or lying down, and mine among the rest.
I thought I had taken a good hold, to steady myself while he was rising;
yet his motion was so heavy, and my strength so far exhausted, that I
could not possibly hold on, and tumbled off over his tail. Turning
entirely over, I came down upon my feet, which prevented my receiving
any material injury, though the shock to my frame was very severe."
A Camel's Revenge.
Mr. Palgrave who combats the idea of the camel's docility, unless
stupidity may be taken as its synonym, gives a painful illustration of
the savagery to which the camel may be provoked by cruel treatment,
though we doubt if the elephant who is proverbial for his docility would
stand the brutality to which the camel is sometimes treated. "A lad of
about fourteen, had conducted a large camel laden with wood from one
village to another, half an hour's distance or so. As the animal
loitered or turned out of the way, its conductor struck it repeatedly,
and harder than it seems to have thought he had any right to do, but
not finding the occasion favourable for taking immediate quits, it 'bode
its time', nor was that time long in coming. A few days later the same
lad had to re-conduct the beast, but unladen, to his own village. When
they were about half way on the road, and at some distance from any
habitation, the camel suddenly stopped, looked deliberately round in
every direction, to assure itself that no one was in sight, made a step
forward, seized the unlucky boy's head in his monstrous mouth, and
lifting him up in the air, flung him down again upon the earth with the
upper part of his skull completely torn off, and his brains scattered on
the ground. Having thus satisfied his revenge, the brute quietly resumed
his pace towards the village as though nothing were the matter, till
some men, who had observed the whole, though unfortunately at too great
a distance to be able to afford timely help, came up and killed it."
The Terrors of the Desert.
Terrible stories are told of the sufferings sometimes experienced by
camels and Arabs alike on desert journeys. Burckhardt gives the
following narrative which is quoted by Captain Brown. "In the month of
August, a small caravan prepared to set out from Berber to Daraou. They
consisted of five merchants and about thirty slaves, with a
proportionate number of camels. Afraid of the robber Naym, who at that
time was in the habit of waylaying travellers about the wells of
Nedjeym, and who had constant intelligence of the departure of every
caravan from Berber, they determined to take a more easterly road, by
the well of Owareyk. They had hired an Ababde guide, who conducted them
in safety to that place, but who lost his way from thence northward, the
route being little frequented. After five days' march in the mountains,
their stock of water was exhausted, nor did they know where they were.
They resolved, therefore, to direct their course towards the setting
sun, hoping thus to reach the Nile. After experiencing two days'
thirst, fifteen slaves and one of the merchants died; another of them,
an Ababde, who had ten camels with him, thinking that the animals might
know better than their masters where water was to be found, desired his
comrades to tie him fast upon the saddle of his strongest camel, that he
might not fall down from weakness, and thus he parted from them,
permitting his camels to take their own way; but neither the man nor his
camels were ever heard of afterwards. On the eighth day after leaving
Owareyk, the survivors came in sight of the mountains of Shigre, which
they immediately recognized; but their strength was quite exhausted, and
neither men nor beasts were able to move any farther. Lying down under a
rock, they sent two of their servants, with the two strongest remaining
camels, in search of water. Before these two men could reach the
mountain, one of them dropped off his camel, deprived of speech, and
able only to move his hands to his comrade as a sign that he desired to
be left to his fate. The survivor then continued his route; but such was
the effect of thirst upon him, that his eyes grew dim, and he lost the
road, though he had often travelled over it before, and had been
perfectly acquainted with it. Having wandered about for a long time, he
alighted under the shade of a tree, and tied the camel to one of its
branches: the beast, however, smelt the water, (as the Arabs express it)
and, wearied as it was, broke its halter, and set off galloping in the
direction of the spring, which, as afterwards appeared, was at half an
hour's distance. The man, well understanding the camel's action,
endeavoured to follow its footsteps, but could only move a few yards; he
fell exhausted on the ground, and was about to breathe his last, when
Providence led that way from a neighbouring encampment, a Bisharye
Bedouin, who, by throwing water upon the man's face, restored him to his
senses. They then went hastily together to the water, filled the skins,
and, returning to the caravan, had the good fortune to find the
sufferers still alive. The Bisharye received a slave for his trouble."
The Llama.
The Llamas are classified as members of the Camel Family of which they
are the second genus. The Vicuna (_Llama vicugna_) of the Peruvian Andes
is one of these. It is a very beautiful animal, combining, as Professor
Cunningham points out, to some extent the characteristics of the camel,
the deer and the goat. Its neck is long and slender and carried with a
graceful curve, and its legs are slight and elegant, its wool fine and
silky. It is a timid animal and very wary of the approach of danger,
seeking safety in flight, though often falling a victim to the rapacity
of the puma, or the necessities of the Patagonian Indians, who eat its
flesh and clothe themselves in its skin. The Llama, (_Llama peruana_)
and the Alpaca (_Llama pacos_) are other species of this family. The
former is used by the Peruvians as a beast of burden, as it will carry
from a hundred-weight to a hundred weight and a half for fifteen or
twenty miles a day. According to Mrs. Bowdich, at one time 300,000 of
these animals were employed in carrying metal over the rugged mountain
passes for the Potosi mines alone. Like the camel, it refuses to stir
when overloaded, and continues to move at a slow uniform pace throughout
the day. Like camels also, they are apt to fight among themselves, when
the wool flies in an absurd way, and if not separated, they do each
other serious injury. When offended with their driver they spit in his
face, their saliva being particularly unpleasant. The Alpaca which is
also domesticated is useful for its fleece.
The Deer.
There are two families of Deer; that of the Mouse deer with its
mouse-shaped head, and without horns, and that of the deer proper of
which there are more than fifty species. There are five species of the
mouse deer, genus _Tragulus_, all of which belong to Asia. They are
found in Java, Penang, Sumatra, Borneo, Cambodia and Siam. The Indian
Chevrotain (_Tragulus meminna_) is spotted. It belongs to Ceylon,
though it is said to be common to the forests of all parts of southern
India. Mrs. Bowdich says: "The smallest of the deer species lives in
Ceylon; a lovely delicate creature, with lustrous eyes and of exquisite
form. When full grown it is only ten inches high, fourteen long, and
weighs about five pounds. Its throat, head and neck are all white; its
body is grey, striped with black, and spotted at equal distances with
yellow. Although very timid it is to be tamed; but if angry it kicks out
its little hind legs and slender pointed hoofs with great violence. One
which was domesticated, was placed on a dinner table, where it ran about
and nibbled fruit from the dishes, answered to its name and returned the
caresses which were bestowed upon it." The deer proper, genus _cervus_,
is found all over Europe, Asia and America, one or two species belonging
to the Mediterranean coasts of Africa. Of these the Red Deer, the
Reindeer, the Moose or Elk, the Fallow Deer and the Roe buck are the
better known species, all of which chew the cud, have a divided hoof,
and shed their horns annually.
The Red Deer.
The Red Deer (_Cervus elaphus_) is still found in Scotland as well as in
the forests of Europe and Asia and is commonly hunted for sport. The
stag is a timid and apparently highly sensitive animal, but when brought
to bay has often shown a strength and courage which has cost its hunters
dear. It is one of the most beautiful animals in nature, and combines
with its beauty powers of speed and endurance which are little short of
the marvellous. Full grown it measures four feet six inches in height at
the shoulders, and about five feet six inches in length. The hunting of
the stag in England has been a royal sport for centuries, though owing
to altered conditions it has fallen into disrepute of late years. The
overcrowded state of the country near London, and the half tame
character of the royal stags have rendered the performances of the
Windsor stag hounds an exhibition more honoured in the breach than in
the observance. It would be difficult indeed to find anything noble or
enobling in the following account of a stag hunt quoted by Captain Brown
with deprecation, from the pages of "The Sporting Magazine."
A Stag Hunt.