THE AFRICAN BUFFALO 215 



or long grass must be exceptionally high and thick to render 

 it invisible at 15 to 20 yards distance. A lion would of 

 course be more difficult to see than either. A buffalo, whether 

 it is standing up or lying down, will never give the sportsman 

 the slightest indication of its proximity, and to detect it he 

 has to trust almost entirely to his own or gun-bearer's eye- 

 sight, unless perhaps the beast's lungs are badly injured by 

 the shot, when it may breathe heavily enough to be heard 

 at some little distance. The same may be said of an elephant, 

 but there is a greater chance of seeing it on account of its 

 enormous size. A lion, on the other hand, will very often, if 

 not always, warn the sportsman of its presence by a low growl 

 when at a distance of some 15 to 20 yards. 



A buffalo has a better chance of seeing the sportsman than 

 the sportsman has of seeing it, as bush is usually thinner a 

 foot or two from the ground than higher up, and a buffalo, stand- 

 ing with his head much lower than a man's, can therefore see 

 under it. A sportsman will generally see an elephant first, 

 and can dodge and creep about in the bush, which, if only 

 5 feet high or even less, will enable him to keep out of sight. 

 A lion has a still better chance than either, as his head is much 

 nearer to the ground, whether the beast is standing or lying 

 down, and he has both a better chance of seeing and of hearing 

 the sportsman's approach. 



A buffalo, if it sees or hears the sportsman approaching 

 at a distance, is as likely to stop to fight it out as to bolt away. 

 The same with an elephant. A lion will generally give a low 

 growl and slink off. Therefore a sportsman, taking it all round, 

 is more likely to come unexpectedly to very close quarters with 

 a buffalo than with a lion or an elephant. 



In the event of a charge by one of these three beasts, 

 covert that would stop a lion would stop neither a buffalo nor 

 an elephant. 



A buffalo may not at all improbably be within a few feet 

 before a shot can be fired, owing to the sportsman's inability to 

 see it sooner. The chances are against this with an elephant. 



