I 7 o DAYS AND NIGHTS BY THE DESERT. 



cartridges as I went, I hurried to my horse. In 

 an instant his knee halter was undone, and I had 

 swung myself into the saddle, when, to my surprise, 

 three of my dogs, that I had left with my people, 

 joined me. They might be of use, thought I, so 

 dismissed the subject and turned my attention to 

 the possibility of whether I could gallop a gemsbok 

 down. True, it was wounded ; but as it " streaked " 

 across the plain, from the pace it was going, no one 

 would have thought so. 



My horse and dogs saw the game at one and the 

 same moment, and I almost believe that each tried 

 in rivalry to outdo the other in their endeavours 

 to overtake it. For myself, I took a hold of my 

 horse's head, just sufficient and no more than was 

 requisite to steady him, shoved my feet well home 

 in the stirrup-irons, and watched, with no little 

 curiosity, the result of the trial of speed between 

 horse, dogs, and antelope. One of the pursuers was 

 nearly a pure bred greyhound, the others more than 

 half-bred, and although I believe that I was better 

 mounted than any man who had previously entered 

 this hunting veldt, I could not hold a candle to the 

 hounds, although I gained rapidly on the game. 

 Soon the dogs ran up alongside the gemsbok. 

 The leading one being but a puppy, but very 

 promising on account of its pluck, attempted to 

 take a forward hold, when the game made a sweep 

 with its head, the long straight antlers for a 



