528 



THE GEMS-BOK. 







bound away. It is therefore very difficult to follow the course of a Duyker, as it makes so 

 many sharp turns and leaps, that both 'spoorer' and dogs are frequently baffled. 



"If the course of the buck can be watched, and the place discovered where it lies down 

 after its erratic manoauvrings, it can be easily stalked by approaching it from the leeward side. 

 One must, however, be a good shot to secure a Duyker with certainty, for the little creature 

 is so tenacious of life that it will carry off a large charge of buck-shot without any diffi- 

 culty, and the irregular course which 

 it then pursues requires great perfec- 

 tion and quickness in shooting with a 

 single ball. 



"The Duyker is not a very swift 

 animal, and almost any ordinary dog can 

 pull one down. An old pointer, which 

 served me as a dog of all work, fre- 

 quently caught and held a Duyker until 

 I came to the death. v 



WE now arrive at some remarkably 

 handsome animals, which are notable, 

 not only for their dimensions, but for 

 the size and beauty of their horns. The 

 GEMS-BOK, or KooKAAM, is a large 

 and powerful member of the Antelope 

 tribe, equalling the domestic ass in size, 

 and measuring about three feet ten 

 inches at the shoulder. The peculiar 

 manner in which the hide is decorated 

 with boldly contrasted tints, gives it a 

 very peculiar aspect. The general hue 

 is gray, but along the back, upon the 

 hinder quarters, and along the flanks, the 

 color is deep black. A black streak also 

 crosses the face, and passing under the 

 chin, gives it the appearance of wearing 

 harness. It has a short, erect mane, and long, sweeping, black tail, and its heavy horns are 

 nearly straight from base to tip. 



The long and sharply -pointed horns with which its head is armed, are terrible weapons of 

 offence, and can be wielded with marvellous skill. Striking right and left with these natural 

 bayonets, the adult Gems-bok is a match for most of the smaller carnivora, and has even been 

 known to wage a successful duel with the lordly lion, and fairly to beat off its antagonist. 

 Even when the lion has overcome the Gems-bok, the battle may sometimes be equally claimed 

 by both sides, for in one instance, the dead bodies of a lion and a Gems-bok were found lying 

 on the plain, the horns of the Antelope being driven so firmly into the lion's body, that they 

 could not be extracted by the efforts of a single man. The lion had evidently sprung upon 

 the Gems-bok, which had received its foe upon the points of its horns, and had sacrificed its 

 own life in destroying that of its adversary. 



In Captain Gumming' s deservedly popular work on Southern Africa may be found the 

 following notes concerning this animal. 



"The Gems-bok was intended by nature to adorn the parched karroos and arid deserts of 

 South Africa, for which description of country it is admirably adapted. It thrives and 

 attains high condition in barren regions where it might be imagined that a locust could not 

 find subsistence ; and burning as is the climate, it is perfectly independent of water, which, 

 from my own observation and the repeated reports both of Boers and aborigines, I am con- 

 vinced it nerer by any chance twites. Ite flesh is deservedly esteemed, and ranks next to that 



DUYKER-BOK. Cephalophui mergens. 



