CHAP. VIIL ANECDOTES OF ANTELOPES. 383 



across the animal, but luckily the blow had made it swerve, 

 and one of its horns, instead of coming in contact with my 

 body, merely made a long scratch on my leg. At this 

 second the hunter above me fired, placing me in greater 

 danger from his bullet than I was already in. Fortunately 

 the man was a first-rate shot, and it struck the antelope 

 in the haunch, and drove lengthways right through the 

 body, causing the blood to spurt out all over me as the 

 beast sprang down, and after an unavailing effort to keep 

 its legs, fell lifeless just below me. The natives, who had 

 come up by this time, were much frightened when they 

 saw me all smeared with blood, and the long tear in my 

 clothes where the horn had entered, and would not at 

 first believe that I had escaped with a mere scratch. On 

 examining the dead nkonka we found that my first 

 bullet had passed clean through the neck above the 

 withers, and had temporarily stunned it, the teeth of the 

 dogs, no doubt, first restoring it to consciousness. 



I do not think that fatal accidents, except to dogs, 

 often happen in the pursuit of this antelope, formidable 

 as it undoubtedly is. Only one has ever occurred within 

 my personal knowledge, though another of a somewhat 

 similar nature, but of which, however, I do not know the 

 exact details, happened during a hunt on a sugar planta- 

 tion on the coast of Natal, the victim in that case being a 

 Kaffir. I was an eye-witness of the one to which I have 

 referred, though the distance at which I was rendered 

 me unable to afford any assistance to the unfortunate man. 

 I was staying at the time with a planter, who, though 

 he had been but a short time in Africa, was a keen 

 sportsman, as well as a capital shot. His bungalow was 



