THE NAKONG. 433 



sessed, and which would, in some degree, have enabled me to 

 supply this deficiency, were left behind in Africa. Through 

 the kindness of Colonel Steele, an opportunity has been af- 

 forded me of inspecting one or two heads of the nakong, as 

 also a caross (brought from the Lake Ngami by Mi\ Oswell) 

 made out of pieces of the skins of this animal. But they are 

 all so imperfect that to attempt any thing like a scientific 

 description would be ineffectual ; the more so, perhaps, as I 

 only once had an opportunity of viewing a pair of nakongs, 

 and that was at a distance. Suffice it, therefore, to say, that 

 the general color of the animal is a subdued brown, darkest 

 on the back, and on the front of head and legs. Beneath it 

 is of a lighter hue — almost ash-colored. On each side of the 

 rump, as also on the inside of the legs, if I remember rightly, 

 there is a whitish line or patch. The hair of the skin, which 

 is much used by the natives for carosses, is long and coarse. 

 The horns are black, very like those of the koodoo, and, m 

 the adult animal, would appear to attain to an equal, if not 

 larger size. Before they are much developed there is scarce- 



the tragelaphus eurycerus — the broad-horned antelope — of which speci- 

 mens of horns and heads have been brought from the Bight of Biafra, 

 on the west coast of Africa. In the "Proceedings of the Zoological 

 Society," No. 250, p. 47, the following details appear : 



" Head, pale bro^vn. Broad band before the eyes, and two large 

 spots on cheeks ; chin and front of upper lip white. Horns elongate, 

 thick, scarcely bent fom'ard at the tip. Throat with long black hairs." 



Again, from a head in Mr. "Warwick's collection : 



" The horns are very similar to those of t. angasii, but the head is 

 considerably larger, nearly as large as that of the koodoo, and the 

 horns are thicker and larger ; they are twenty-seven inches long in a 

 straight line from base to tip, and nine inches in circumference at the 

 base. The hair of the head is also paler and more uniformly colored, 

 and with very large white spots on the cheek, much larger than those 

 of the koodoo or of t. angasii. The throat has a distinct mane of black- 

 ish rigid hairs. The muffle is very like that of t. angasii, and larger 

 than that of the koodoo. The skull is imperfect; it has no appear- 

 ance of any suborbital pit or slit." 



T 



