Had the crocodile risen in front of Jock that would 

 have been the end one snap would have done it ; 

 but it passed clear underneath, and, coming up just 

 beyond him, the great lashing tail sent the dog up with 

 the column of water a couple of feet in the air. He 

 did as he had done when the koodoo bull tossed him : 

 his head was round straining to get at the crocodile 

 before he was able to turn his body in the water ; and 

 the silence was broken by a yell of wild delight and 

 approval from the bank. 



Before us the water was too deep and the stream 

 too strong to stand in ; Jim in his eagerness had gone 

 in shoulder high, and my rifle when aimed only just 

 cleared the water. The crocodile was the mark for 

 more assegais from the bank as it charged up stream 

 again, with Jock tailing behind, and it was then easy 

 enough to follow its movements by the shafts that 

 were never all submerged. The struggles became 

 perceptibly weaker, and as it turned again to go with 

 the stream every effort was concentrated on killing 

 and landing it before it reached the rocks and rapids. 



I moved back for higher ground and, finding that 

 the bed shelved up rapidly down stream, made for a 

 position where there would be enough elevation to 

 put in a brain shot. The water was not more than 

 waist high then, and as the crocodile came rolling and 

 thrashing down I waited for his head to show up 

 clearly. My right foot touched a sloping rock which 

 rose almost to the surface of the water close above the 

 rapids, and anxious to get the best possible position 

 for a last shot, I took my stand there. The rock was 



389 



