160 LARGE GAME. chap. hi. 



doing so, and reaching the top of the rise over which the 

 eland had disappeared, I was surprised to find one standing 

 within a few yards of me, and as it turned its head round 

 to watch me, I could tell that it was unable to go further, 

 and must be the one that I had fired at. With game that is 

 not likely to turn upon one there must be always a certam 

 amount of pity felt, increased, in cases like the present, 

 when the animal, one of the most beautiful in the world, 

 is standing close to you sick to death, though giving no 

 outward sign of having received a mortal wound, and 

 watching your movements with the great beseeching eyes 

 that are characteristic of the antelope and deer tribes, and 

 one hastens, in sorrow, to put an end to its pain. The 

 uncomfortable feehng, however, vanishes as you approach 

 and admire the splendid head your victim carries, and 

 Httle pain mingles with the pleasure with which you give 

 orders as to how it should be severed, so as to set the 

 horns off" to the best advantage, and, at the same time, 

 not to over-burden your men. 



I had been under the impression that it was a young 

 bull, but after its death I found that it was a cow of 

 the striped variety, but so large, that we found it no easy 

 task to break her up, and were very glad to see some 

 Swazis appear, who were trapping wild cats, and who not 

 only helped us, but prevented any of the meat being 

 wasted. When we had finished, and the men had made 

 up their loads of skin, horns, and tit-bits, we started 

 homewards ; but as they had seen another herd of eland 

 not far from where the first came from, I went by myself 

 in the direction pomted out, leaving the burdened natives 

 to take the more direct road. 



