The three lads, accompanied by old Gozo the Kaffir, set off in high
spirits at daylight, expecting to have a magnificent day's hunting.
Denis, from having more experience than his companions, took the lead.
Lionel, who, though much younger, had spirits enough to carry him
through anything, kept up with him; but Percy, although he did his best,
being less inured to the heat of the climate, soon began to feel
fatigue, and expressed his fears that he should have to turn back.
"Don't say that; come along, come along," cried Denis. "You won't mind
the heat or feel tired, directly we get sight of the game. Gozo says
that about five miles farther on there's a broad stream, running through
a wide valley or rather a plain, and that at the ford to which he will
conduct us we shall be certain to meet with large animals, elephant and
rhinoceroses, quaggas and pallahs, and other deer."
Percy, thus encouraged, pulled himself together, and tried to forget the
heat. They rode on, however, for several miles, without meeting with a
living creature. Nothing was to be seen on either hand but wild
mountain-sides and arid plains dotted here and there with gigantic
ant-hills and occasional groves of tall trees.
At length, having surmounted a low ridge, they came suddenly in sight of
a herd of wildebeests or gnus, grazing quietly about a mile from them.
Denis was about to dash forward, when Gozo called to him and advised him
to make a circuit so as to come upon the herd on the lee side. Turning
their horses' heads, therefore, they descended the hill they had just
mounted, and keeping under its shelter, made their way northward. They
were thus able to get round until they found themselves within a few
hundred yards of the herd, in which there could not have been less than
sixty or eighty animals. Suddenly, however, the leader of the herd, a
fine old fellow with a flowing mane, and a beard descending down his
breast, perceived them, and off they dashed at a slashing pace, a cloud
of dust marking their course, while the young hunters pursued. Denis
led the way, Lionel keeping close after him. Gozo galloped off to the
right, intending apparently to get ahead of the herd, and turn them, so
as to drive them back and enable the lads with more ease to shoot one or
two down. The chase was exciting in the extreme. The wildebeests at
first ran well ahead of their pursuers.
"We shall soon be up to them!" cried Denis. "They'll not keep at that
pace long together, you'll see."
He was right, for after a run of a couple of miles the animals began to
slacken their speed, and at length Gozo was seen far away in the
distance, and well ahead, gradually nearing them.
"We'll stop here," cried Denis, as they came to some thick bushes. "We
can conceal ourselves, and the wildebeests won't mind the horses, even
if they see them."
He and Lionel dismounted, placing their horses behind the bushes, with
their reins on the ground, a sign to the well-trained animals that they
were not to move from the spot. Percy soon came up, and followed their
example. They then knelt down so as to be completely concealed. The
herd, now turned by Gozo, came galloping back, not apparently
frightened, and in no hurry, for Gozo having accomplished his object,
had pulled in his rein so as to allow them to move at a moderate rate.
On the animals came, lashing their sides with their flowing tails.
Sometimes their leader would break away from the ranks, paw the ground,
apparently determined to make a headlong charge, should an enemy appear;
then suddenly he would face about and rejoin the herd. Then the whole,
which had stopped for a short time, would again dash off in wild
confusion, enveloping themselves in a cloud of dust which almost
completely hid them from view. The young hunters waited with no little
anxiety, lest they should take another direction, but on they came
towards the bush, which they were about to pass when Denis whispered to
Lionel to fire at the second, while he would take the leader.
"Percy, do you aim at the third; I feel sure you'll hit him in the
breast."
Percy could not help smiling, for he felt far from sure of doing
anything of the sort, anxious as he was to succeed. The lads held their
breath. Denis was the first to fire, and a loud thud told him that his
shot had taken effect. Directly afterwards Lionel and Percy pulled
their triggers, but with what effect they could not tell, for the herd,
frightened by the report, began kicking up the dust, as they scampered
off, in a way nearly to conceal them from view. All that could be seen
was a confused mass of prancing heels, whisking tails, and occasionally
a few heads.
"Hurrah!" cried Denis; "my fellow is down." Not far from them, where
the leader had been seen when Denis fired, it now lay struggling on the
ground.
Denis reloaded, and another shot quickly put it out of its misery.
Whether any of the others were hit could not be ascertained, as they all
went scampering off together; but Gozo was seen pursuing them, and the
report of his rifle showed that he, at all events, considered himself
within range of one of them.
Denis at once set to work to skin the animal. Neither Percy nor Lionel
could render him much assistance, and he was very glad when Gozo made
his appearance. The Kaffir had shot a wildebeest, he said, but he had
come to assist them in disposing of theirs. It was agreed that the
parts of the flesh which were worth preserving should be left in the
bush, covered up with branches, so as to prevent the hyenas and jackals
from getting at it until their return.
It took them some time, and their task accomplished, they sat down to
enjoy some of the food they had brought in their holsters. Although
they might without shame have returned to camp, satisfied with their
morning's sport, they had a wish to secure some larger and more valuable
game. Their patient horses stood all the time cropping the leaves and
herbage near them; for grass, properly speaking, there was none.
Their lunch over and their thirst quenched with some water which they
had brought, although there was none for the horses, they again mounted,
and continued in the direction they were before going.
They had applied so frequently to the water bottles, that their stock
was soon exhausted; but supposing that they should speedily arrive at
the river, they did not trouble themselves much about the matter, until
they began to feel the unpleasant sensations of extreme thirst. Percy,
less accustomed to the climate than his companions, suffered greatly.
"When shall we reach the river?" he exclaimed at last. "My throat feels
like a dust bin. I shall choke if I can't pour some liquid down before
long."
"Never fear," answered Denis; "just try not to think about it. I'll ask
Gozo how far the river is off. It cannot be more than half a mile now,
I should think."
The Kaffir, however, did not give a satisfactory answer. It was some
time since he had been in that direction, and it might be farther than
he supposed.
"Then the faster we push on the better," cried Denis.
"Whollop-ahoo-ahoo! on we go;" but although he whipped his unfortunate
steed, the animal refused to move at a quicker pace. All the horses
showed signs of suffering. They opened their mouths, turned up their
nostrils, and the foam was seen gathering on their lips. They were
riding on when, as they were approaching a thicket, a sound, as if a
battle was going on between some of the brute creation, reached their
ears--roarings, snortings, and bellowings.
"What can produce that tremendous uproar?" cried Percy.
"Gozo says it is a lion belching," answered Lionel; "but there's some
other animal, and we must be ready to fire or get out of its way."
They again cautiously rode on.
"A lion! a lion!" cried the Kaffir, and looking over some bushes, they
saw in an open space a large buffalo cow engaged in battle with the
monarch of the wilds. Not far off lay the body of a buffalo calf, which
at once explained to them the cause of the battle. The lion had taken
up a position not far from some trees and thick bushes, whose branches
were elevated but a short distance from the ground. The buffalo stood
with her horns ready to receive her antagonist. Suddenly the lion
bounded forward, fixing his powerful claws on the face and neck of the
buffalo, when instantly, in spite of his weight, she turned, and rushing
at the boughs, in a moment the lion was thrown off, and lay on his back
with his claws in the air. Furiously the buffalo charged at him,
pounding away with her horns in a manner which made it seem impossible
that any life would be left in him. While the buffalo was retreating to
make another charge, the lion, managing to roll himself over, recovered
his feet. The buffalo received him as before, on her head. He in vain
endeavoured to reach her hinder quarters, and once more she bore him
into the brushwood. In an instant he was knocked off with a crash which
it seemed must have broken every bone in his body; but he was soon again
on his feet. This was more than the lion could stand, and, coward as he
was at heart, finding himself thus defeated in his object, he took to
flight, pursued by the buffalo, who went dashing away after him through
the bush.
Gozo immediately dismounted, and stealing forward, dragged the calf into
the bush.
"Gozo is determined that the lion shan't benefit, even if he escapes the
buffalo's horns," observed Denis. "Let's keep out of the way, and we
shall see what will next happen." Presently the buffalo came back,
looking about everywhere for her calf; but not observing it, naturally
supposed that the lion had carried it off, and consequently away she
dashed again in pursuit of the still fugitive king of the wilds.
"The big cowardly cat! I wish that she may overtake him, and give him a
pounding which will knock the breath out of his body entirely!" cried
Denis.
"What! do you call the lion a cat?" exclaimed Percy.
"To be sure I do. What is he but `Felis leo'? which means the cat lion,
as you know, in Latin. He is more cowardly, too, than most cats, for
he'll never attack either a man or a beast unless he thinks he has a
good chance of coming off the victor. I have not forgotten an
unpleasant morning I spent once up a tree, with a couple of lions and
their cubs rampaging round me; and if it had not been for my father and
Hendricks, I should have been there still, at all events my bones would,
for nothing would have induced me to come down and be torn to pieces by
the brutes. It was a day or two after Hendricks found you, Lionel, and
our friends Mangaleesu and Kalinda made a wonderful escape from their
enemies which you have heard of."
"What do you mean by finding Lionel? I thought he was the son of
Hendricks," said Percy.
"So I am his adopted son," answered Lionel. "At first Hendricks thought
that my parents might be Dutch boers; when Denis however tried to teach
me English, I remembered so many English words that he was convinced
they were English people; but although he has endeavoured to discover
them for my sake rather than for his own, he has never yet succeeded in
finding even the slightest clue as to who they could be."
"How very curious!" said Percy. "When I get home to my father and
mother, I must tell them all about it. They will be much interested,
and I hope, Lionel, that you will come and see them."
"I should like to do so very much, if Hendricks will let me," said
Lionel. "But he wants me to accompany him on this expedition, that I
may become as great a hunter as he is, and that is just what I should
like to be. I am sure, therefore, that he will not allow me to stay
with your family longer than the one night we shall outspan at the farm,
as we have had so many delays that he is in a hurry to push on."
The conversation was interrupted by a loud crashing of the underwood,
and the lion was seen bleeding from numerous wounds, springing on over
all impediments, with the buffalo in the distance, still pursuing him.
He took no notice of the party on horseback, except to turn slightly
aside as he came near them. He was too far beyond range to enable
either Denis or Gozo to hit him. Although the buffalo came much nearer,
Denis would not injure the noble brute; but the Kaffir would have tried
to kill her, had not he and Lionel shouted out to him not to fire. The
lion had not made many bounds forward when he fell. He managed,
however, again to get himself on his feet, and was once more going on
when the buffalo got up to him, and striking his hinder quarters with
her horns, sent him flying, heels over head; then dashing forward, she
struck him again and again before he had time to bring his claws into
play.
"Hurrah! she's done for him!" cried Denis, as the brave animal was seen
butting and then trampling on the carcase of the lion. "We had better
let her enjoy her victory without interference; for probably, being in a
combative mood, she may run a muck at us, and we shall be under the
painful necessity of shooting her."