

CHAP. n. RHINOCEROS. 93 



could tell by her lighter colour and great size, walked 

 forward, her great thin ears flapping as she moved, and 

 the prominent eyes that are so remarkable among these 

 beautiful antelopes visible even at this distance. She 

 was followed by the whole herd, their movements possess- 

 ing that wonderful stillness that induces in the observer 

 a feeling that he is not looking at flesh and blood. Among 

 them was only one bull, excepting a yearling with horns 

 not larger than those of an inyala, who, though he had 

 allowed the wary old doe to lead the way, no sooner 

 saw her reach the water in safety than, using his magni- 

 ficent horns to clear his path, he pushed his way through 

 the rest, and advancing past them into the deeper water, 

 stood, seemingly looking at his own reflection, within five 

 yards of me. I could count every white stripe that 

 marked his sleek skin, could notice the flaws in his horns 

 where he had damaged them, either in fighting, or against 

 a tree, and I could see every wrinkle and scratch in his 

 great dark neck, and every line of his delicate limbs. It 

 was a sore temptation, and at a later hour I should cer- 

 tainly have given way to it ; but as I did not know what 

 I might disturb, or how near the larger game might be, I 

 allowed him to go unhurt. 



Twilight in the tropics is of very short duration, and 

 soon after this, the moon having not as yet risen, it 

 became as dark as it ever is in that clear atmosphere, 

 where myriads of stars of a magnitude unknown in this 

 country cover the sky, and where the planets shine so 

 brightly as to throw a distinct and dark shadow, so that, 

 although I could now and then hear the rustling of small 

 animals as they passed on their way to the water, I could 



