272 UNDER THE AFRICAN SUN 



afterwards, that the Martuii bullet had hit, and had been 

 deflected to one side under the skin, where we felt it and 

 cut it out. Owing to the scattered bush, it was difficult to 

 follow the animal, but in the end we succeeded in securing it, 

 though it required several more bullets. 



The Cokei Hai'tebeest. — It has quite different horns to the Jack- 

 soni. This is due to a slight difference in direction where the 

 two bends occur. Instead of curving, as in the Jacksoni, almost 

 straight forward at the first bend, the curve in the Cokei is to the 

 side. This gives a wider stretch between the horns. Then again 

 at the second bend, instead of pointing straight behind, the horns 

 of the Cokei point almost straight up. In other respects, even 

 including the perch on the bony skin-covered protuberance, the 

 Jacksoni and Cokei horns resemble each other. There are slight 

 but interesting variations among the Cokei horns themselves ; in 

 some the terminal points are directed backward, in others in- 

 ward, instead of the more common direction of upward. 



The first antelope I ever shot was a Cokei hartebeest, and 

 I am not likely to forget the danger I unconsciously exposed 

 myself to on that day. We had got to that part of the Kiboko 

 river, which lies on the old route. I was near the head of the 

 caravan with another European. The caravan stopped, and I 

 was told we w^ere going to pitch the camp there. My companion 

 had already gone off to stalk some hartebeest seen in the distance. 

 1 thought I might as well do the same, and I took a slightly 

 different direction. My companion returned to the camp without 

 firing a shot. I fired at 400 yards. I did not know whether I 

 had hit, but on going to examine the place, my boy pointed out 

 to me some drops of blood. 



We two, my boy and I, went in pursuit, and, after a fatiguing 

 chase, we came, more by good luck than skill, upon the wounded 

 animal which had not been able to keep up with the herd. I 

 succeeded in rolling it over. My boy cut its throat ; for though 

 it was quite dead, no devout iSIahommedan wall eat the flesh 

 of an animal which has not had its throat cut, nor will he eat 

 it unless it is cut by a Mahommedan. According to Koran 

 teaching, the Mahommedan should not eat the flesh, unless the 

 throat was cut when the animal w^as still alive ; but this part 

 he discreetly ignores, especially when on caravan journeys, as 

 it would make his limited chances of getting meat practically 

 nil. Having cut the animal's throat and satisfied his conscience. 



