232 THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 



curtains, attached to the stairs of the poop-deck and to the rig- 

 ging in all directions, rendered it impossible to descend. I at 

 once tore away some of the ties and awakened the sleepy people. 

 My servant, Suleiman, was sleeping next to the cabin door. I called 

 to him for a rifle. Before the affrighted Suleiman could bring 

 the rifle, the hippopotamus dashed at us with indescribable fury. 

 With one blow he capsized and sank the zinc boat with its cargo 

 of flesh. In another instant he seized the dingy in his immense 

 jaws, and the crash of splintered wood betokened the complete 

 destruction of my favorite boat. By this time Suleiman appeared 

 from the cabin with an unloaded gun in his hand, and without 

 ammunition. He was a very good man, but was never overbur 

 dened with presence of mind ; he was shaking so fearfully with 

 nervousness that his senses had entirely abandoned him. All the 

 people were shouting and endeavoring to scare the hippo, which 

 attacked us without ceasing with a blind fury that I have never 

 witnessed in any animal except a bull-dog. 



" By this time I had procured a rifle from the cabin, where they 

 were always kept fixed in a row, loaded, and ready for action, 

 with bags of breech-loading 1 ammunition on the same shelf. The 

 movements of the animal were so rapid, as he charged and 

 plunged alternately beneath the water in a cloud of foam and 

 wave, that it was impossible to aim correctly at the small but 

 fatal spot upon his head. The moon was extremely bright, and 

 presently, as he charged staight at the diahbeeah, I stopped him 

 with a No. 8 Reilly shell. To my surprise he soon recovered, 

 and again commenced the attack. I fired shot after shot at him 

 without apparent effect. The diahbeeah rocked about upon the 

 waves raised by the efforts of so large an animal ; this move- 

 ment rendered the aim uncertain. At length, apparently badly 

 wounded, he retired to the high grass ; there he lay by the bank, 

 at about twenty-five yards' distance, snorting and blowing. I 

 could not distinguish him, as merely the head was above water, 

 and this was concealed by the deep shadow thrown by the high 

 grass. Thinking that he would die, I went to bed ; but before 

 this I took the precaution to arrange a white-paper sight upon the 



