The big game of Africa

Introduction

Good books on hunting trips and adventures in the Dark Continent are plentiful. My only apology for offering to the public The Big Game of Africa is my desire to comply with the wishes of many friends, who, having heard my lectures on Africa, have repeatedly asked me to issue something like them in book form.

This volume is not only a narrative of my own wanderings and experiences in that continent, but is also intended to be a guide book to those many who are interested in the life and habits of the African game animals as well as in the best way of stalking these with either camera or gun. For in the many good books on hunting in the Dark Continent, little or nothing has been said that may help the would-be African big game hunter in the selection of the proper outfit, guns, cameras, curing materials, etc., nor do they give him any definite information as to where, when and how to secure the game he wants, and none of them contains the most necessary introduction to the Ki-Swahili language, even a slight knowledge of which will prove of immense help to the sportsman when hunting in British East Africa, German East Africa and Uganda.

This book is the result of my own experiences and observations during three different expeditions to British East Africa, and contains the most reliable information I was able to obtain from other sportsmen and professional hunters, as well as from the wild sons of that wonderful game country who, themselves, spend most of their lives roaming around among the Big Game of Africa.

vii

INTRODUCTION

If, therefore, through the following pages the reader will be benefited to some extent, as well as derive pleasure from the photographs and simple accounts of big game hunting, which are related without exaggeration or " stretching," my labor has indeed not been in vain.

R. T.

Chapter I British East Africa

General topography and climate — An enormous zoo — Bothersome insects — The best shooting grounds — Different game districts — The best hunting seasons — Present game laws — The big-game reserves — Different shooting licenses . 1-19

CHAPTER H

THE CARAVAN OR "SAFARI"

The Safari — The Swahili language — Fitting out the caravan — Average expenses of a hunting trip — The useful " askari " — Human beasts of burden — The advantage of using porters of different tribes — The all-important headman — Gun-bearers — The men's " posho " — A word about horses, mules and donkeys — Dangers of night marching . 20-29

CHAPTER HI

The mane of the lion — Its favorite hunting grounds — Its chief prey — Fight between a lion and a buffalo — How the lion kills its prey — Chasing the big feline on a pony — A beautiful trophy — A glorious charge — Are there different species of lions — The terror of the " man-eater " — Overestimated danger — Lion hunting on horseback — Whole " herds " of the dangerous cats — Its much-discussed roaring — A narrow escape — A man-eater entering a railroad car — My first lion — How the savages kill the king of beasts — The uncertainty of lion-hunting 30-51

CHAPTER IV

Different species of elephants — A real king of beasts — Wonderful road-makers — Their favorite resorts — The difficulties of elephant-tracking — How to single out the path of a " tusker " — A serious charge — Wary monsters — Bad cartridges — Following a wounded giant into the bush — A lucky elephant hunt — A terrific charge — My finest trophy — The eyesight of the elephant — A serious moment — Gored by the monarch — A miraculous escape — Mr. Selous's tailless elephant — The native as elephant hunter — Fight between an elephant and a rhino — Does the big pachyderm lie down when sleeping? — A large herd 52-74

CHAPTER V

The tallest living animal — The giraffe as mischief maker — An inhabitant of the desert — A silent sufferer — A grand old bull — A smitten conscience — Do lions dare to attack giraffes? — A " mother " defending her " baby " — Catching and taming the animals — Do they ever charge ? — Stalking the giraffe with the camera — Different species — Why the natives kill them — Whole herds of giraffes . . . 75-86

CHAPTER VI

THE HIPPOPOTAMUS, OR RIVER HOG

Different species — River horse or river hog? — An ugly-looking creature — The cunning of the hippo — How to secure the beast — The watchfulness of the clumsy pachyderm — Sometimes a dangerous enemy — Killed by a river hippo — The animal a menace to shipping — Declared a " vermin " in Uganda — Basking hippos — Stalking the river-horse with the camera — Watching for the carcass — A foolhardy swim — A trophy lost — The destructiveness of the hippo — Its large tusks 87-102

CHAPTER VII

A very useful family — Different species — A grand beast — One of the most dangerous animals — The buffalo a very wary beast — A great disappointment — A successful hunt — Why the natives fear the buffalo — His great vitality — Recently declared a " vermin " in Uganda — The courage ot the buffalo — A lucky shot — The buffaloes increasing . 103-113

CHAPTER VIII

Are there different species of leopards ? — The black leopard — Powerful and destructive beasts — Much feared by the natives — The leopard as man-eater and undertaker — A plague to the natives — More cunning than the lion — Native leopard traps — Catching the big cat — A long shot — Using the Maxim gun-silencer — A dangerous antagonist — Trained cheetahs for sport — The doglike animal not destructive — Courageous when wounded or cornered — A very keen-sighted animal — Asgar's cheetah chase — The animal partially protected 1 14-129

CHAPTER IX

Five different species of rhino — The white and the black African rhino — Two different types of the black variety —

Strangely shaped horns — A treacherous brute — The rhino bird — Interfering with railroad building — Its remarkably " fine nose " — Stalking rhinos with the camera — Their much-discussed poor eyesight — A terrible antagonist — On rhino trail in dense brush — An ugly charge — A lucky shot — The rhino's " investigations " — Its different behavior — A curious charge — A successful hunt — Killed by a female rhino — The destructiveness of the animal — Nightly visits — A narrow escape — The protective " boma " — The rhino a most dangerous beast . . . 130-151

CHAPTER X

The characteristics of antelopes — Vast herds on the plains — The stately eland — Its favorite grazing grounds — A very wary animal, difficult to stalk — Combined meekness and strength of the eland — A prey unconscious of its power — Eland meat a delicacy — The beautiful roan — A courageous beast — The sable antelope, a much-coveted trophy — Rare in British East Africa — Fierce and dangerous when cornered — The curious gnu — Herds of countless wildebeests — A long shot — The gnu possesses great vitality — A tremendous surprise — The intelligence of the wildebeests

152-172

CHAPTER XI

THE LARGER EAST AFRICAN ANTELOPES (Continued)

The magnificent greater kudu — Hard to secure in British East Africa — Stalking the kudu with camera — The water buck — A new subspecies, the " Cobus defassa tjaderi " — The beautiful impalla — Its marvelous leaps and great vitality — Impalla meat not fit for the table — The lovely oryx — An interesting hunt — The oryx one of the most courageous antelopes — The beautiful Grant's gazelle — Its meat very palatable — The splendid little antelopes too much pursued 173-191

xii

CHAPTER XII THE HARTEBEEST AND ZEBRA

The hartebeest a very ugly-looking animal — Different species — A fine Jackson's hartebeest — The inquisitive kongoni — • A nuisance to the hunter — Common lion food — A very keen-sighted and wary animal — Caravan lost and found — The beautiful zebra — Three varieties existing — The Grevy's and Burchell's zebra — The latter the most common wild animal in British East Africa — Enormous zebra herds — They are stupid and forgetful — Very fond of water — Stampeding zebras — The animal's commercial value — Is now purposely being exterminated for its destructiveness 192-210

CHAPTER XIII

The repulsive hyena — Spotted and striped varieties — Hyenas not exclusively scavengers — The beasts as man-eaters — They often hunt in broad daylight — Hyenas as undertakers — Their hideous howl — A cornered hyena — The monkey family — Their destructiveness to crops and gardens — The beautiful colobus — Performing monkeys — An all-white colobus — This species never seen in menageries — The ugly baboons — Easily tamed — The giant pig — The hideous wart hog — The mischievous bush pig . . 211-226

CHAPTER XIV

The deadly puflf adder — Curious way of attacking its enemies or prey — Puff-adder poison for savages' arrow points — The powerful python — A monarch among snakes — Stepping on a python — The big reptile a good tree climber —

xiii

Other poisonous snakes — The dangerous crocodile — ^A crocodile killing a rhino — ^When they turn man-eaters — The monster fond of birds — The danger of crossing rivers where there are many crocodiles — How to cross in safety • — The giant bustard — The now protected ostrich — Millions of guinea fowl — Great numbers of geese, ducks, flamingoes and other birds 227-244

CHAPTER XV

The Bantu negro — The Swahili tribe — How they build their houses — The coast people's dress — " Lazy, lying thieves " — The intoxicating palm wine — Buying wives on the installment plan — The Wanika — The Wateita — Scaring away the " rain gods " — Wonderful deliverance — The Wakamba — Their deadly arrow poison — The promising Kikuju tribe — Extremely fond of all kinds of ornaments — A Kikuju romance — The powerful Masai — Their uncertain origin — Their strange houses — The El-Moran — The wild Wanderobo — The best native animal trackers — The industrious Kavirondo — Their nude but chaste women — People with " tails " — ^A superstitious people in a rich country . ' 245-261

CHAPTER XVI

MISSIONARIES, SETTLERS, AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS

Characteristics of the natives — Cruel customs — Degraded womanhood — Africa's need of mission work — Globe trotters' criticism of foreign missions — The settlers' attitude — Unscrupulous whites — Mission work as seen by rulers and statesmen — Inefficient missionaries — Sir Harry Johnston's testimony about Uganda — Offensive settlers — Highclass officials — The truth about " mission boys " — The hope of Africa 262-274

xiv

CHAPTER XVII

HINTS ON AFRICAN PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE PRESERVING

OF TROPHIES

The importance and pleasure of wild-animal photography — Great patience and skill required — A rather dangerous undertaking — What cameras to take — The telephoto apparatus — American or foreign makes? — Underexposing general in the beginning — The advisability of taking films or plates — The developing machines — How to skin an animal properly — The most necessary measurements — Different ways of curing the skins — Various kinds of trophies — Our obligations to science and coming generations 275-286

CHAPTER XVIII

A sufficient yet not too bulky outfit — The all-important tent — Necessary provisions — Practical hunting clothes — Boots and leggings — Underclothes and stockings — Camp furniture — Cooking utensils — The emergency tent — The best armament — Small or big bore guns? — The telescope and the gun silencer — The shotgun — Ways of reaching Mombasa . 287-298

CHAPTER XIX

Ex-President Roosevelt on big game hunting in British East Africa — Is the big game threatened with extermination? — The native as big game hunter — Firearms and natives — Many hunting parties — Three good rules for sportsmen — The characteristic game of plains, bush, and forest — The probable future of East Africa as a big game country — The charm of the chase 299-305

XV

I The Ki-Swahili Language 307-333

II Key to the Exercises 334-342

III SwahiH-English Vocabulary 343-356

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

Richard Tjader Frontispiece ^

Map of the hunting district, drawn by the author ... i

Camp of the Tjader East African expedition, 1906, at Solai,

Photograph by H. Lang.

The advance guard of a caravan crossing a river on the way to

Sotik 24

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Young lion walking toward the camera . . , . . 32 •'

Courtesy of Mrs. Caveth.

Lioness killed on the Athi Plains 32

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Large, black-maned lion killed on the Sotik Plain, May, 1909 38 ^' Photograph by R. Tjader.

Large, black-maned lion killed on the Sotik Plain, May, 1909 38 Photograph by R. Tjader.

The lioness which almost killed the author . . . . 46 - Photograph by R. Tjader.

A fine specimen 46

Elephants coming through high bush and elephant grass . 64 • Photograph by R. Tjader.

A splendid trophy: a big bull elephant killed near the Gojito

Mountains, 1906 64

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Large bull giraffe, shot through the heart near Maungu R.R.

station 78 *^

Photograph by H. Lang.

2 xvii

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

Bull giraffe in the Mimosa Jungle on Laikipia .... 78 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Hippo heads showing above the surface of the water in the

Sondo River 94

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Sleeping hippos in the Tana River not far from Fort Hall . 94

Sleeping hippo photographed close to the Sondo River, 1909 . 96^

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Hunting leopard killed by a shotgun with No. B. B. . . 96

Photograph by H. Lang.

A magnificent bull buffalo killed in the Kedong Valley . . 106''

Courtesy of Mrs. N. Carveth.

Large head of the ordinary water buck, Cobus defassa . . 106

Photograph by H. Lang.

Wounded leopard on the Sotik Plains 120

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Young male leopard 120

Courtesy of W. P. Ingall, Two rhinos asleep on the plains to the northwest of Guaso

Narok, distance about forty yards 132

Photograph by R. Tjader.

The same animals. Note the tick birds on the backs of the

beasts 132

Photograph by R. Tjader.

The same animals. The one facing the camera is about to

charge at full speed 134

At about ten yards he fell, killed instantly by a bullet from the

big -577 Express rifle 134

Two different types of rhinos; the upper one represents the

bush rhino, the lower one the rhino of the plains . . 146 Photograph by H. Lang.

Another splendid trophy 146

Ordinary bush buck, shot on Aberdare Mountains . . .154 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Head of new variety of bush buck called " Tragelaphus

tjaderi" 154

Photograph by H. Lang.

xviii

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

Head of a large bull eland i6o

Photograph by H. Lang.

Wounded roan antelope just before the last charge. Shot

near Muhoroni R.R. station i6o

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Wounded sable antelope i66.

Courtesy of IV. P. Ingall.

Small herd of wildebeests, the white-bearded gnu, Sotik, 1909 166 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Male water buck, killed on Laikipia. Found to be a new subspecies of the defassa . family and subsequently called

" Cobus defassa tjaderi " 178

Camera snapped by the author's gun bearer.

3emi-tame female water buck near the Sotik Plains . . 178 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Splendid impalla from Laikipia 182

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Head of large bull oryx 182

Photograph by H. Lang.

Fine head of the graceful Grant's gazelle 188

Photograph by H. Lang.

iVounded Grant's gazelle fighting Mabruki, the gun bearer . 188 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Beautiful head of the Grant's gazelle 194

Photograph by H. Lang.

\n exceptionally fine head of Jackson's hartebeest, shot near

Lake Hannington 194

Photograph by H. Lang.

^erd of zebra, just entering a forest on Kenia . . . 204 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Wounded zebra 204

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Hyena at bay 216

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Flead of large wart hog shot in the Kedong Valley . . . 216 Courtesy of Mrs. Caveth.

xix

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE

Ordinary colobus monkeys 220

Two white colobus monkeys. Both secured on Kenia . . 220 Photograph by R. Tjader.

The deadly puff adder 230

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Iguana, the largest of African lizards 230

Photograph by H. Lang.

Chameleon, which certainly possesses protective coloration . 234 Photograph by H. Lang.

A three-horned, small, tree lizard 234

Photograph by H. Lang.

Crocodile shot at Lake Hannington 238

Photograph by H. Lang.

Buzzards in the act of getting on the remains of a hartebeest . 238 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Five ostriches running away at high speed at some three hundred yards 240

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Huge marabou stork 240

Photograph by R. Tjader.

A pair of flamingoes 242

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Photographing a charging animal 242

Photograph snapped by the gun bearer.

Typical SwahiH house on the coast 248

Hut of the Njamus-Masai near Baringo 248

A young Wanderobo ready to shoot his poisoned arrow . . 258 Photograph by R. Tjader.

Masai El-Moran warriors 258

Photograph by R. Tjader.

Some of the author's trophies at Kijabi R.R. station in 1906 282 Photograph by H. Lang.

Author's " lion camp " on the Sotik 282

Photograph by R. Tjader.

XX

CHAPTER I

British East Africa being not only the best country in the world for big game hunting, the size of the animals, and the multitude of the different species considered, but also of all big game countries by far the healthiest and most easily reached, I shall in the following chapters deal exclusively with that country, its climate, topography, seasons, game, and natives.

Barring the low and unhealthy coast belt on the Indian Ocean, where no game worth shooting exists (with the exception of elephants, having small tusks of comparatively poor quality, buffaloes, with not nearly as fine heads as their upland kinsfolk, and the beautiful sable antelope), the greater part of the Protectorate has a healthful climate. But the sable antelope, which many hunters class as the finest of the antelopes, exists in British East Africa, alas! only on and around the Shimba Hills, not very far from Mombasa. Yet even this stately antelope develops here horns that cannot be compared with those from other inland places, as, for instance, German East Africa and farther south.

From the narrow coast belt the Uganda Railroad begins to climb the inland plateaus and soon reaches an altitude of 1,830 feet at Voi, 5,250 feet at Matchakos, and

I anda Railros r^and soon reaches ai 5,250 feet at Matchako;

5,450 feet above the level of the sea at Nairobi, the government headquarters, and now, in spite of its youth, the most important town in the Protectorate. From Nairobi the climb continues, and at beautiful Lake Naivasha the station lies at an altitude of 6,230 feet, while at a place on top of the Mau escarpment the railroad reaches its highest point. A large signboard is placed here on the north side of the railway with the inscription : " Summit ; altitude 8,320 feet." From here the country gradually falls away toward the great Victoria Nyanza, where the Kisumu railway station lies at an altitude of only 3,650 feet.

The rainfall of British East Africa naturally varies considerably, as the country differs so widely in altitude and general aspect. The latest statistics show an average rainfall of 14.78 inches at Kismayu, on the coast, 73.93 inches at Molo railroad station, from over 80 inches at Kericho down to 38.86 at Nairobi; but on the big mountains, like the Aberdare range. Mount Elgon, and the magnificent, snowclad Kenia, the rainfall sometimes even exceeds 100 inches a year. j

The best and most popular hunting grounds lie to the northeast, north, northwest, and southwest of Nairobi at altitudes varying from 4,500 to 7,000 feet, and can, therefore, with ordinary precautions, be said to be perfectly healthy. Take, for instance, the great Athi plains, northeast of Nairobi. There large herds of zebra, hartebeest, Grant's and Thomson's gazelles may still be seen even from the railroad, with occasional glimpses of the lion, rhino, eland, and giraffe. Here the hunter seldom sees a mosquito, and if he always has the water boiled before drinking it, and is careful not to sit around in wet clothes in the evening, he has no reason to fear any attack of malarial fever.

The only insects that are bothersome on these plains are the ticks, with which the sportsman becomes literally covered from morning to night. Fortunately these ticks, although extremely disagreeable, do not seem to cause any " tick fever," as the dangerous Uganda ticks do. Another very unpleasant experience that many have had on these plains is to be attacked by the hardly noticeable little sand fly, or " funza," the special trick of which is to work its way in under some toe nail, and there, without the knowledge of the toe's owner, deposit a great number of eggs. As soon as this is done, itching generally sets in, and a slight inflammation becomes noticeable, which instantly should be followed by an " operation," generally performed to perfection by the Swahili " boys," who, with a needle, dig out the flea and scoop out the eggs, which otherwise, if hatched, would cause serious trouble, and sometimes even loss of the toe.

By being careful to wash my feet every evening, never to walk around, even on the tent's ground cloth, with bare feet, and using pajamas with " stocking extensions," I fortunately escaped this unpleasant experience. But some people I met, who had been hunting on these plains, had tales of misery to tell about their contact with the " funza." An American hunter, whom I saw in Nairobi, late in 1909, told me that he had not been able to walk properly for several weeks after such an " attack," as the " operation " had been performed rather late, and perhaps not as thoroughly as necessary.

As there is nothing in the way of game on these plains that the hunter may not secure more easily, and that with better horns and finer manes in other, much healthier places, there is no necessity to hunt here, where the animals are much more shy than almost anywhere else in the Protectorate, because so often molested by people from near-by Nairobi. Besides this, there is very little genuine " sport " in such hunting, or, let me say, killing of game on the Athi plains, for hunting in its true sense includes skillful and difficult tracking and stalking, of which there can be ho question here. Let me explain without exaggeration how most men " hunt " on these plains.

With a couple of gun bearers and a few porters to carry the meat and trophies back to camp, the newcomer starts out from his camp generally not very early in the morning. Soon he sees in front of him a herd of zebra and hartebeest, often feeding together. They are calmly grazing at a distance of six to seven hundred yards. As there are no trees for cover, not even an ant-hill to stalk behind, he simply marches on, making straight for the animals. Suddenly, one of the more watchful hartebeests notices him and, as at a word of command, the whole herd swings around and faces him for a moment, the zebra looking particularly pretty, as their shining black and white stripes alternately appear in the sunlight or the shadow.

There are still over five hundred yards to the herd, and carefully the hunter pushes on. The next moment, however, the herd turns with jumps and all kinds of queer antics, and off they go at a gallop for a couple of hundred yards or more. Then they stop, some begin to graze again, while one or two seem to be keeping a sharp lookout for the queer-looking, two-legged intruders. After this maneuver has been repeated a few times, the " sportsman " may succeed in getting up to within two or three hundred yards and, being disgusted with the chase, begin to empty his magazine at the herd in the attempt to bring down some of the animals. A young German lieutenant with whom I traveled back from Africa in 19 lo told me unblushingly that he in such a way, and by firing not less than one hundred and ten shots, had one day on the Athi plains killed only three animals — one zebra, one hartebeest, and one Grant's gazelle ! But he did not tell me how many unfortunate animals he may have wounded more or less severely ! This he was naive enough to call " great sport."

One of the most interesting hunting trips is the Kenia- Laikipia tour. Laikipia is a high plateau at about 7,000 feet altitude, mostly well watered from lovely streams, running down from Kenia and the Aberdare Mountains, and having a climate as nearly perfect for a hunting trip as it is possible to imagine. Only during the noon hours, from eleven to two, the sun is rather hot, the plateau lying exactly on the line of the equator, but the heat is not strong enough to prevent a healthy man from enjoying the following up of his prey even during that time. The rest of the day, both mornings and afternoons, is ideal.

The tour to this plateau can from Nairobi be comfortably made in from four to six weeks, but there is game enough, as to quantity as well as to the value of the trophies, to warrant the spending of two months or more in these beautiful regions. The mosquito is practically unknown, there are no ticks of any kind, the " funza " is nonexistent, and the water of the very best.

If the hunter starts out from Nairobi, going by way of the government station Fort Hall, he can begin his shooting within an hour after he has left the hotel in Nairobi with his " safari," for all along the route are seen the zebra, Coke's hartebeest. Grant's and Thomson's gazelles, many of the smaller antelopes, and sometimes even wildebeests. Then when, near Fort Hall, the Tana River is reached, the safari may follow that stream down for an hour or two to some fine camping grounds among large mimosa trees, and here the sportsman will be able to shoot hippos and crocodiles to his heart's content.

Then continuing the northward march, the caravan passes the fort, or " boma," the native name for all military and government stations, where the hunter generally pays his respects to the Provincial Commissioner, who may require him to show his game license and the special permit to proceed farther, as the Kenia-Laikipia is one of the " closed " districts, for which such a permit is a necessity. From the boma the safari proceeds along a fairly good native path, which in a few days' time leads up among the foothills of the magnificent, snowclad Kenia, which rears its domelike peak over eighteen thousand feet high. Now the sportsman may at any time come across fresh elephant tracks, or meet with buffalos, eland, bush buck, with luck, even the coveted bongo, impalla, water buck, and in a day or two more with the beautiful oryx beisa, wild dogs, possibly giraffes, plenty of rhinos, lions, and leopards, while higher up on the foothills the hunter may bag with ease his allowed number of the beautiful colobus and other fur monkeys, if monkey killing does not seem to him too much like " murder.'* So day after day the party may go on, finding big game everywhere, including the Grevey's zebra in the country northwest of Kenia and near the lovely river Guaso Narok at its junction with the Guaso Nyiro, to the north of which junction the northern game reserve begins. Turning thence upstream on the right bank of the Guaso Narok, the path takes the safari back again toward civilization, returning to the railroad by another also very interesting route.

On this beautiful Laikipia plateau there are scattered a good many Masai villages, or " manyata," where it is possible to obtain fresh, fine milk for trade goods, such as "Americano" (a kind of unbleached muslin), brass wire, glass beads, or, nowadays, also for money. All along the river to the north, at a distance varying from half a mile to two miles from the river bed, there are large plains, extending from rather abrupt bluflfs from the river valley for miles and miles inland, dotted here and there with single good-sized trees, or clumps of the thorny mimosa.

These highlands seem to be the favorite play and feeding grounds of countless rhinos, which, if one is carefully observing the wind, and using some cover, can be approached to within thirty yards and less before they either run away or else, like the Chinese, take exception to being photographed and stared at, and with " pufifs " and " snorts," with lowered horns and uplifted tails, charge down on the intruders. On these plains, where often also eland, oryx, and girafifes are seen, I once met not less than eleven rhinos within one hour, mostly in pairs of male and female or female and young. I was fortunate enough to secure some good photographs of them, but although not intending to shoot any at that time, I finally had to kill a charging bull, whom I had given a chance to save his life by " changing his mind," mitil he was within ten yards of my camera. What happened then will be later described in the chapter on rhinos.