62 DIARY OF A SPORTSMAN NATURALIST 



rush of a heavy body. I sprang round to see the bull 

 viciously charging down on me. There was no mistake 

 about it this time. He had spotted me, and mad with 

 fury meant having me. I was quite close to a big tree and, 

 hurriedly firing my right barrel, got behind it, loosing off 

 the left as he carried on past me. I might have been using 

 a pea-shooter for all the apparent effect on the bull, who 

 only answered to the shots by enraged bellows. He was a 

 young bull, not having yet reached his prime, but brimful 

 of viciousness as I was beginning to discover. I was now 

 becoming seriously alarmed, and as I reloaded the rifle, 

 with fingers that trembled in spite of me, I cast about 

 hurriedly for a refuge. That the bull would return I had 

 no doubt, and I did not like this hide-and-seek business 

 amongst the trees. All round me the trees were large with 

 stout, clean stems and quite unclimbable. Suddenly there 

 flashed across my mind the queer forked tree I had noted 

 on the edge of the forest from my first position. It was an 

 inspiration and I at once set out towards it, my actions 

 hurried by the fact that I heard the bull stop and turn and 

 advance in my direction again. So far as possible I moved 

 backwards in the direction I knew the tree must be, having 

 the edge of the forest on my right hand as a guide 

 and facing in the direction of the bull. I moved very 

 slowly, trying to make as little noise as possible, but I had 

 not gone half the distance before, in stepping round a tree, 

 I walked on to a mass of dry sticks. The sharp crack 

 they produced was immediately followed by an angry 

 roar from the bull. I had by then discovered the position 

 of the tree and so knew the direction to make for. I started 

 running, but realized that I could not get there in time as 

 the grass and bushes were thicker now. Again I sought the 

 protection of a friendly tree and fired a shot at the bull as 

 he passed. But I was now shaking like a leaf and could 

 hardly see out of my eyes for perspiration, and the bullet 

 went in far behind as was subsequently discovered. This 

 charge settled me. I could hear the bull already pulling 

 up and I ran stumbling through the grass and undergrowth 

 for the tree, the instinct of self-preservation uppermost. 

 Panting and swearing and perspiring and in a blue funk, 

 for I heard the bull again advancing, I made a jump for the 

 low horizontal branch, missed my hold and came to earth. 

 Scrambling up I had another try, got on to the branch and 



