NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



sheep and goats, were caught up in the seething 

 countless swarm of Springbucks and irresistibly- 

 borne away. At these times the farmers turned 

 out to a man and slaughtered them in great numbers, 

 and cut up the flesh into long, thin strips and dried 

 it in the sun. This sun-dried meat is known as 

 biltong. In this way the farmers laid by immense 

 stocks of wholesome savoury meat. 



The farmers were frequently obliged to turn out 

 and shoot these antelopes in self-defence, for, when 

 they swept over a farm they not only caught up 

 the various stock in their mass, but left the land 

 absolutely destitute of vegetation. Mr. W. C. 

 Scully, the well-known South African author, tells 

 many thrilling and fascinatingly interesting stories 

 of these great Springbok treks. 



On one occasion, when he was Civil Commissioner 

 for Namaqualand in 1892, and special Magistrate 

 for the Northern Border of Cape Colony, he was 

 obliged to issue a hundred stand of Government 

 rifles to the Boers for the purpose of turning aside 

 a threatened invasion of migrating Springboks, 

 which would otherwise have swept off the crops 

 in the entire district. 



So vast were the swarms of bucks in these trek- 

 bokken, as these wonderful migrations were called, 

 that they even swarmed through the smaller villages, 

 choking the streets with their living stream. 



Lions, Leopards, Cape Hunting Dogs, Hyaenas, 

 Jackals and other carnivorous animals and birds of 



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