Big Game Shooting 



brought along to camp, where he divides it out 

 in the evening. 



The only thing worth recording during the 

 hundred and ten miles' march that brought me to 

 the foot of the Laikipia escarpment, on another 

 occasion, was an adventure with a rhinoceros 

 one of those incidents that are always occurring 

 if one wanders about this part of Africa often 

 enough. 



We were proceeding in single file through grass 

 up to our knees, threading our way in and out of 

 thorn bushes, when, without the slightest warning, 

 there was a crash and a snort, and the unwieldy 

 bulk of a bull rhinoceros loomed up some ten 

 yards away. He had been lying in the friendly 

 shade of a bush out of the sun, and had only just 

 scented us. There he stood, swaying his head 

 from side to side, apparently not having quite 

 made up his mind what to do. He was in such 

 close proximity to the path that I was afraid 

 of leaving him alone, because he would be 

 almost certain to get more angry and end by 

 doing some considerable damage to property if 

 not to life. So bang went the rifle, and with a 

 thud the bullet hit him. Down came his head ; 

 then he grunted once or twice, and charged 

 straight at us! He was thoroughly angry, deter- 

 mined to annihilate us or die in the attempt. 



I could not quite understand how it was that I 

 had not killed him on the spot, as he was so close, 



62 



