292 A HUNTER'S WANDERINGS ch. 



short, jumped off about thirty yards behind the 

 nearest, and taking steady aim, pulled the trigger, 

 but, instead of hearing the anticipated report and 

 answering bellow of the buffalo, my ears were greeted 

 with a sharp metallic click that at once told me there 

 was no cap on the nipple. Thinking it had been 

 brushed off by one of the bushes whilst galloping in 

 pursuit, and not imagining that such a thing was 

 likely to occur again, I hastily put another on, and, 

 jumping on to my horse, soon made up the lost 

 ground and once more neared the old bulls, one of 

 which being considerably in the rear of the other, 

 I determined to confine myself to him. Just then 

 he crossed a little dry gully, and, on reaching the 

 opposite side, turned for the first time and eyed me 

 savagely from beneath his close-set, rugged-looking 

 horns. 



I had now pursued the old brute for a considerable 

 time, and this, of course, had not much improved his 

 temper (which in an old buffalo bull is not at the 

 best of times of the sweetest), so, expecting a charge, 

 did not dismount, but, reining in my horse, took a 

 quick aim and pulled the trigger with just the same 

 result as before. The buffalo, probably not liking 

 the idea of charging through the gully, turned, and 

 again resumed his flight. Putting on a third cap, I 

 now kept it down with my thumb, and was soon 

 once more close behind him, and had galloped for 

 perhaps a couple of minutes more, when, entering 

 a patch of short thick mopani bush, he stopped 

 suddenly, wheeled round, and came on at once, as 

 soon as he caught sight of the horse, with his nose 

 stretched straight out and horns laid back, uttering 

 the short grunts with which these animals invariably 

 accompany a charge. 



