XII TWO GIRAFFES SHOT 239 



much quicker pace, and leave me behind altogether : 

 so reining in I jumped off, and taking as steady an 

 aim as my arm, tired with flogging, would allow, 

 fired at a large dark-coloured cow, that looked to 

 me in good condition. The bullet clapped loudly, 

 and I saw her stagger, but recovering immediately, 

 she went on, though slightly in the rear of the 

 others. At this moment my friend jumped off 

 close behind them, and gave another cow a shot. 

 1 was now a long way behind, but my horse, though 

 slow, possessed good staying powers, so that by dint 

 of keeping on at a hard gallop, and cutting angles 

 when I could, 1 again crept up, and gave my cow 

 another shot, quickly followed by a third, which 

 brought her to the ground with a crash. She was 

 not yet dead, however, for as I approached she reared 

 her lofty head once more, and gazed reproachfully at 

 me with her large soft dark eyes. For the instant, 

 I wished the shots unfired that had laid low this 

 beautiful and inoffensive creature. But now the 

 cries of my Kafirs and Masaras, following like 

 famished wolves on the blood spoor, broke upon 

 my ear ; so, stifling all remorseful feelings, I again 

 raised my rifle and put an end to the miseries of my 

 victim, whose head, pierced with a heavy bullet, fell 

 with a thud upon the ground, never to be raised 

 again. Leaving some of the boys to cut up the 

 meat, I rode on with the rest to look for my friend, 

 whom I found beside another prostrate giraffe which 

 he had killed a little farther on. As the one I had 

 shot was the fatter of the two, we left the Kafirs here 

 and went back to mine. It was now late ; so hastily 

 dividing the boys into two parties, and bidding them 

 sleep by the two giraffes respectively, and cut them 

 up and bring in the meat on the following day, we 



