Hunting in East Africa 



one's higher sensibilities are dulled by the ani- 

 mal side of his nature, and I fear I welcomed 

 the sun more for the warmth of its rays than 

 for the beautiful and fleeting vision it produced. 

 Then the hippos ! While the sun was rising my 

 raft was not at rest, but was being propelled by 

 slow strong strokes toward the center of the 

 lake, and as the darkness lessened I saw the 

 surface of the lake dotted here and there by 

 spots, which soon resolved themselves into the 

 black, box-like heads of my game. They were 

 to all appearance motionless and appeared quite 

 unconscious or indifferent to the presence, in 

 their particular domain, of our strange craft 

 and its burden. 



I approached them steadily, going more 

 slowly as the water grew deeper, and more 

 time was needed for the pulling out and dip- 

 ping in of the pole. When, however, I had 

 reached a position some 150 yards from the 

 nearest group, five in number, they all with a 

 loud snort faced me. I kept on, despite the 

 ardent prayer of the boatman, and when within 

 100 yards, and upon seeing three of the hippos 

 disappear beneath the surface, I took careful 

 aim and fired at the nearest of the remaining 

 two. I could see the splash of my bullet as it 



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