xvi THE RHINOCEROS 295 



sand -paper, and oiled; it then becomes semi-transparent, like 

 clouded amber, and is much esteemed by the great personages of 

 Abyssinia for shields ; these are beautifully mounted with silver, 

 and are highly ornamental. I have a piece of skin tanned which 

 measures 587 square inches and weighs 13| Ibs. In its fresh 

 state it would weigh more than double. 



Although the Soudanese Arabs eat the flesh of this animal, it is 

 refused by the savage tribes of the White Nile regions. These 

 people say that the Arabs are hyaenas, who will eat anything, even 

 crocodiles. The reason given by the blacks for their objection to 

 the flesh of the rhinoceros is, that the blood is unlike that of any 

 other animal ; that should your hand be bloody, and you close your 

 fist for a few moments, the fingers stick together, and you have a 

 difficulty in opening them. 



I have eaten young rhinoceros, and found it quite as good as a 

 buffalo calf, but I imagine that anything young is tolerable. This 

 was a curious incident. I was shooting, and exploring the affluents 

 of the Nile from Abyssinia, and having examined the course of the 

 Atbara and Settite rivers, I passed into the territory of Mek 

 Nimmur, who was at war with the Egyptians. The first march 

 from his camp brought us to the rivers Salaam and Augrab, at 

 their junction ; and I was following the course of the main river 

 below this point, when we came upon the tracks of rhinoceros. 

 Following upon these, I left the two camels behind, with the ropes, 

 etc., which they always carried to secure any animals I might shoot. 



We had not advanced far through the tolerably open jungle 

 when we arrived at the foot of a rocky hill. There were many 

 large boulders lying about, when suddenly one of my Arabs touched 

 my arm and directed my attention to an object that appeared to be 

 a rock ; almost at the same moment a rhinoceros rose quickly from 

 the ground, and had evidently obtained our wind. I made a good 

 shot with a No. 10 rifle through the shoulder, and after turning 

 round twice, and uttering a peculiar squeaking sound like the 

 bellows arrangement of a crying doll, it fell to the ground and died. 

 We now observed a fine young animal which was standing upon 

 the opposite side of the mother, and I suggested to my famous 

 Hamran hunters that we should call up the camels and endeavour 

 to secure the calf with our good supply of ropes. 



This was quite opposed to their ideas, as the young one was 

 sufficiently advanced to boast of a pair of small horns, which the 

 Arabs declared to be too formidable to warrant an attempt at 

 rapture. 



I thought otherwise, therefore I arranged that we should make 



