166 ADVENTURES IN SOUTH AFRICA. 



serpents of Africa, death ensuing within an hoar after 

 its bite. 



On the 15th I had a very good day's sport. As the 

 day dawned I peeped from my hole, and saw troops of 

 blesboks feeding on every side of me, but none camo 

 within range. I shot one springbok, and, having con- 

 cealed him in the rushes, walked to camp. After break- 

 fast I took the field with Kleinboy and the Bushman, 

 and rode north to try for blesboks. While lying be- 

 hind an ant-hill on the bare plain, a herd of about thirty 

 wildebeests came thundering down upon me, and the 

 leading bull nearly jumped over me. Into one of these 

 I fired ; he got the ball too far back, however, and made 

 off, but was found by one of my men the following day. 

 Presently Kleinboy rode up, and stated that while he 

 was driving the blesboks he had observed an old stag 

 hartebeest standing in the shade of some tall green 

 bushes in the adjacent range of hills. I resolved to 

 stalk him in the most approved Highland fashion ; so, 

 having made an accurate survey of the ground with my 

 spy-glass, I rode within a quarter of a mile of him, and 

 then proceeded to creep in upon him on my hands and 

 knees. In this manner I got within sixty yards of him, 

 where I lay flat on- my breast for several minutes until 

 lie should give me his broadside. Presently he walked 

 forth from the cover of the bush beneath which he had 

 been standing, when I sent a ball in at his right shoul- 

 der, which rested on the skin in his left haunch. Wheel- 

 ing about, he bounded over an adjacent ridge and was 

 out of sight in a moment. On gaining this ridge, I 

 was just in time to see the noble hartebeest stagger for 

 a moment, and then subside into the long grass in a 

 hollow below me. He was a princely old stag, carry- 

 ing splendid horns and a beautiful coat of new hair. J 



