146 DAYS AND NIGHTS BY THE DESERT. 



obtrusive gentleman, when it was just possible he 

 might take a fancy to try what sort of food a white 

 man's carcass made. It is always better, under such 

 circumstances as getting lost, if it is after dark, 

 not to endeavour to reach your camp, but select 

 the most suitable place obtainable for passing the 

 night, there light your fire, and console yourself 

 with the feeling that you might be worse off, and 

 that, in all human probability, the morrow will see 

 you extricated from your difficulties. 



Before proceeding further, it might be well to 

 describe the general appearance of the sassaybe 

 (Acronotus lunata) more frequently known in the 

 colony as the bastard hartebeest. This species is 

 remarkable for its deep ruddy chestnut brown colour 

 along the back and shoulders, which becomes fulvous 

 and tawny as it approaches the belly, while on the 

 forearm and lower portion of the hind-quarters 

 an obviously blue shade pervades the hide. Its 

 face, which is light chestnut, has a dark, broad 

 line descending from the level of the horns to 

 the muzzle, while the horns themselves, which are 

 deeply annulated, after making a wide sweep 

 outward, have their points turned inwards and 

 backwards. 



At the shoulder, the sassaybe stands nearly four- 

 teen hands in height, while the droop towards the 

 rump must make the animal at least six inches less, 

 if taking a perpendicular line from the hind hoof to 



