210 



THE GEMS-BOK AND THE ORYX. 



into the lion's body that they could not be extracted by the efforts of 

 a single man. The lion had evidently sprung upon the Gems-bok, 

 which had received its foe upon the points of its horns, and had sacri- 

 ficed its own life in destroying that of its adversary. 



As is the case with many long-horned animals, one of the horns, 

 usually the left, is shorter than the other. In a fine pair of Gems-bok 

 horns in my collection, the left horn is nearly three inches shorter than 

 the right. 



Although the Gems-bok is nearly independent of water, it stands as 

 much in need of moisture as any other animal, and would speedily per- 

 ish in the arid des- 

 erts were it not di- 

 rected by its in- 

 stincts toward 

 certain succulent 

 plants which are 

 placed in those re- 

 gions, and which 

 possess the useful 

 power of attracting 

 and retaining every 

 particle of moisture 

 which may happen 

 to settle in their 

 vicinity. The most 

 common and most 

 valuable of these 

 plants is a bulbous 

 root, belonging to 

 the Liliacea, called, 

 from its peculiar 

 property of retain- 

 ing the moisture, 

 the AVater-root. 

 Only a very small 

 portion of the valuable plant appears above the ground, and the 

 water-bearing bulb is so encrusted with hardened soil that it must 

 be dug out with a knife. Several other succulent plants also possess 

 similar qualities, among which may be noticed a kind of little melon 

 which is spread over the whole of the great Kalahari desert. 



Resembling the Gems-bok in many particulars, the Oryx can be 

 easily distinguished from its predecessor by the shape of the horns, 

 which, instead of being nearly straight, are considerably bent, and 

 sweep toward the back in a noble curve. 



The Gems-bok {Oryx, Guzella). 



