xiv THE BUFFALO 275 



horns, but the ground being full of ruts, he tripped, and fell upon 

 his back, immediately in the path of the savage bull. Instinctively, 

 as quick as lightning, my right hand had drawn my long hunting- 

 knife and plunged it hilt-deep exactly behind the shoulder. To 

 my amazement, the buffalo fell to the blow ; and the kicking of 

 all four legs, and the convulsive twitching of the tail, showed 

 unmistakably that this time the mighty bull was beyond recovery. 



I had jumped back upon the instant, to clear myself from the 

 animal ; Dick had only just recovered himself, and was staggering 

 away, until I called him back. "He's dead enough this time," 

 I shouted, as I showed him the long knife streaming with blood, 

 which had paralysed so suddenly an attack which must have been 

 fatal. 



Our native attendants appeared stupefied ; the whole affair, 

 from the moment we had surveyed the apparently dead buffalo to 

 its actual death, had not occupied one minute. 



This was a very wonderful escape, and a most practical example 

 of the teaching which I was giving when the resuscitation took 

 place. The questions would naturally be asked " What sort of 

 a hunting-knife was this 1 ?" and "What was the nature of the 

 wound which effected such an instantaneous collapse 1 ?" 



The knife was a portion of a real old " Andrea Ferrara" High- 

 land claymore. The blade was 18 inches in length and 2 inches 

 in breadth, double-edged, and as sharp as it was possible to make 

 it. The point was as keen as a lancet ; that is the condition in 

 which a hunting-knife should always be kept. I never leave the 

 camp for a day's work without first examining the edge and point 

 of my knife : if necessary, I personally sharpen it upon a Turkey 

 hone, and I never allow a servant to handle it. 



We made a careful post-mortem examination of the buffalo. 

 The small No. 20 spherical bullet had settled upon the spine at 

 the back of the neck, but had not damaged the bone ; the shock 

 had stunned the animal for a few minutes. The sharp double edge 

 of the long hunting-knife had completely divided the great artery 

 of the heart, which was split open exactly at the orifice. 



From that moment my companion declined to fire at buffaloes ; 

 I felt no hesitation in supporting his determination, as his weapon 

 was totally inadequate to the work required. 



Although it appears to have been a wanton destruction of life, 

 I had no pangs of conscience in shooting these ferocious animals, 

 as it would have been exceedingly dangerous in those days to have 

 gone out snipe-shooting with an ordinary smooth-bore, while so 

 many bulls were possessors of the plain. The practice with the long 



