VI RHINOCEROS COMING TO DRINK 113 



The water-hole was situated on the edge of a 

 large open pan, at the back of a small hollow half 

 beneath a low ledge of rock, and must have been 

 fed from an underground spring, as the Bushmen 

 told me that it never dried up. 



As, on the evening in question, the moon was 

 almost at the full, I determined to watch the water 

 during the early hours of the night, in the hope of 

 getting a shot at some animal at close quarters as 

 it came to drink, for there was a great deal of recent 

 spoor in the pan of rhinoceroses, buffaloes, zebras, 

 and antelopes. 



As soon, therefore, as my Kafirs had made a 

 " scherm " ^ amongst some mopani trees, just beyond 

 the edge of the open ground, I took one of my 

 blankets and both my heavy elephant guns, and 

 established myself on the ledge just above the pool 

 of water. Lying fiat on my stomach, I was com- 

 pletely hidden from the view of any animal coming 

 towards me across the open pan by the long coarse 

 grass, which grew right up to the edge of the rock 

 ledge beneath which lay the pool of water. 



I had not long taken up my position when a 

 small herd of buffaloes came feeding up the valley 

 behind me. They, however, got my wind when 

 still some distance away from the water, and ran off. 



About half an hour later, I suddenly saw a 

 rhinoceros coming towards me across the open pan, 

 and as the wind was now right, I thought he would 

 be sure to come to the water. 



He was, however, very suspicious, and kept con- 

 tinually stopping and turning sideways, apparently 

 listening. In the brilliant moonlight I had made 

 him out to be a black rhinoceros almost as soon as 

 I saw him, for he held his head well up, whilst as 

 a white rhinoceros walks along its great square 



^ A semicircular hedge of thorn bushes within which we slept with fires at 

 our feet. 



I 



