KHINOCEROS-HUNTING 443 



more acute than that of the buffalo, it is soon alarmed by the 

 approach of any danger, and when it flies up, the buffaloes 

 instantly raise their heads to discover the cause which has led 

 to the sudden flight of their monitor. The Textor sometimes 

 accompanies the wild ox on the wing, at other times it sits upon 

 its withers, as if enjoying the ride. 



The black rhinoceroses are of a gloomy melancholy temper, and 

 not seldom fall into paroxysms of rage without any evident 

 cause. Seeing the creatures in their wild haunts, cropping the 

 bushes, or quietly moving through the plains, you might take 

 them for the most inoffensive good-natured animals of all 

 Africa, but when roused to passion there is nothing more terrific 

 on earth. All the beasts of the wilderness are afraid of the 

 uncouth Borelo. The lion silently retires from its path, and 

 even the elephant is glad to get out of the way. Yet this brutal 

 and stupidly hoggish animal is distinguished by its parental 

 love, and the tenderness which it bestows on its young is re- 

 turned with equal affection. European hunters have often wit- 

 nessed that when the mother dies, the calf remains two full days 

 near the body. 



Although not gregarious, and most generally solitary or 

 grazing in pairs, yet frequently as many as a dozen rhinoceroses 

 are seen pasturing and browsing together. As is the case with 

 many other inhabitants of the tropical wilderness, the huge 

 beast awakens to a more active life after sunset. It then 

 hastens to the lake or river to slake its thirst or to wallow in 

 the mud, thus covering its hide with a thick coat of clay, against 

 the attacks of flies ; or to relieve itself from the itching of their 

 stings, it rubs itself against some tree, and testifies its inward 

 satisfaction by a deep-drawn grunt. During the night, it 

 rambles over a great extent of country, but soon after sunrise 

 seeks repose and shelter against the heat under the shade of a 

 mimosa, or the projecting ledge of a rock, where it spends the 

 greater part of the day in sleep, either stretched at full length 

 or in a standing position. Thus seen from a distance, it might 

 easily be mistaken for a huge block of stone. 



The rhinoceros is hunted in various manners. One of the 

 most approved plans is to stalk the animal, either when feeding 

 or reposing. If the sportsman keep well under the wind, and 

 there be the least cover, he has no difficulty in approaching the 



