340 WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS CHAP. 



lowered to receive an attack, these points are presented to the 

 enemy, and a sudden lift would be certain to impale. 



The colour of the skin is a beautiful chestnut, inclining to red ; 

 the texture of the coat is exceedingly fine, and in the bright 

 sunlight it glistens like that of a well-groomed hunter. 



Although the live weight of this animal would exceed 500 Ibs., 

 it is one of the fastest antelopes, and is more difficult to over- 

 take than any other. In fact, I have never seen a horse that 

 has been able to run down a tetel, and the Hamran Arabs 

 would not as a rule attempt the chase. I have ridden after 

 them on several occasions upon a good horse, and I have 

 imagined that I gained upon the herd, but when within about 

 100 yards they seemed to be aware of the danger of a close 

 approach, and, without any apparent effort, they kept the horse 

 at its maximum speed. 



They are, as the Dutch name implies, " hard beasts," and re- 

 quire correct practice with the rifle. Unless shot in a vital place 

 they will travel for an unlimited distance, and will seldom be 

 recovered. As the colour is bright, they are readily distinguished 

 among the green foliage, and upon open ground they can be seen 

 at a great distance. 



Like many others of their tribe, they are difficult to 

 approach, and they generally place a sentry upon some favour- 

 able position, that will command a distant view. The white 

 ant hills in Central Africa are very numerous, and being 5 or 6 

 feet above the surface, they afford admirable watch-towers, upon 

 which the sentry generally takes his stand, while the herd grazes 

 in security in the immediate neighbourhood. 



The te'tel feeds principally upon grass, but it is attracted by 

 the tender young shoots of the various mimosas at the com- 

 mencement of the rainy season. 



The distressing months, when a continuance of rain has en- 

 couraged a giant growth of herbage, cannot be appreciated by 

 those who have not experienced the block of vegetation. The 

 entire country becomes impassable, being clothed in a dense 

 mass of coarse grass from 8 to 10 feet high. By degrees 

 this ripens, and when the dry weather has continued for two or 

 three months, it becomes highly inflammable, and is fired in 

 all directions by the inhabitants. When a strong north wind 

 is blowing, the sight is most impressive, as nothing appears to 

 check the flames. The fire rushes onward with wild delight, 

 crackling the hollow canes, licking the dried leaves off lofty 

 branches, and roaring like a heavy gale as it drives forward in 



