300 WILD REASTS AND THEIR WAYS CHAP. 



it attends upon ; this is the ordinary plover, which when alarmed 

 cries in good English, throughout the world, " Did-he-do-it 1 Did- 

 he-do-it 1 " These birds are not employed in protecting the animals 

 they wait upon, but they are simply searching for insects which 

 infest such creatures, and when disturbed themselves, their cries 

 and movements naturally alarm the beasts upon which they fatten. 



I have had no personal experience of the Indian rhinoceros, 

 which is heavily protected by thick folds of skin, instead of the 

 comparatively smooth exterior of the African species ; but the 

 habits of the animal appear to be somewhat similar, with the 

 exception of its frequenting marshy localities. 



I have never found the African rhinoceros in the neighbourhood 

 of swamps, but, on the contrary, I have generally met them in dry 

 and elevated places, at the base of rocky hills, or in woods, at 

 some distance from a river. Certain animals have their regular 

 hours for drinking : the rhinoceros in Africa approaches the water 

 an hour after dark, and during the day it may retreat several 

 miles inland. The female Ketloa has a longer horn than tfie male, 

 but more slender. The males are continually grinding their horns 

 by sharpening them upon rocks and the trunks of trees ; this 

 process reduces their size, from continued friction. 



The female has only one offspring at a birth, and the ugly 

 little calf is well protected by its mother. In a very few weeks 

 after its introduction to the world it becomes exceedingly strong and 

 active, and follows its mother over the rough ground at consider- 

 able speed. At that early age, when from two to four months 

 old, the young ones are captured by the sword-hunters, who 

 hunt the mother until the calf becomes thoroughly fatigued. 



When the vast bulk of a rhinoceros is considered, it is astonish- 

 ing to see the speed that this heavy animal can attain, and continue 

 for a great distance. I have hunted them in company with the 

 Arabs, and for at least 2 miles our horses have been going their 

 best, keeping a position within 5 or 6 yards of the hind-quarters, 

 but nevertheless unable to overtake them before they reached an 

 impenetrable jungle. It is the peculiar formation of the hind legs 

 which enables the rhinoceros to attain this speed ; the length from 

 the thigh to the hock is so great that it affords immense springing 

 capacity, and the animal bounds along the surface like a horse in 

 full gallop, without the slightest appearance of weight or clumsiness. 



Upon a level plain, free from bushes or stones, a good horse 

 would quickly overtake the black rhinoceros, but the animal is 

 seldom found upon such favourable ground, and its strength and 

 three-hoofed feet give it a peculiar advantage for travelling at a 



