UP YOU GO ! 47 



over a second one. Then I loaded, fired, and hit 

 the other two. One moved slowly away, joined 

 the stampeded herd, and I lost him, although I 

 know he was mortally wounded. The other 

 wounded one at once attacked the two dying ones 

 and gored their bodies, and then stood sentry over 

 them. I waited some time in hopes he would 

 move off, but he kept on walking from one to the 

 other and refused to go away. The tide was 

 beginning to turn and I knew we should have to 

 leave the island in a short time. Meyer implored 

 me to come away. I realised the folly of ap- 

 proaching a furious wounded buffalo, but I also 

 knew that unless I shot him I should lose my 

 trophies. I thought the matter well over and I 

 deliberately elected to risk it. I walked up to 

 within 100 yards of the buffalo, fired, and dropped 

 him on his knees. He sprang up again at once 

 and charged me at a fearful pace. I stood quite 

 still and fired at the nape of his neck. I fired too 

 low and hit him in the face. Then I knew I was 

 done for. I had no second rifle, and I had hardly 

 time to think. All I could do and did was to stand 

 still, turn sideways, and try to avoid the points 

 of the horns. In this I succeeded, but the buffalo 

 caught me on the right thigh and tossed me 10 feet 

 in the air, right over his back. Meyer says I 

 turned a complete somersault in the air with my 

 rifle in my hand, and came down right on the top 

 of my head. I landed in mud and sent up a small 

 column of mud and water. The buffalo turned to 

 finish me, but in so doing he caught sight of a 

 flying native, one of our men, whose loin-cloth 

 was flapping in the wind, and which no doubt 



