156 BIG GAME SHOOTING 
quite unconscious of the stalker’s presence, even out in the 
open where there is little covert, although exciting and often 
rather difficult work, is rarely, if ever, dangerous ; but follow- 
ing the blood spoor of a wounded buffalo, rhinoceros, or 
elephant into places where there is little chance of seeing the 
beast excepting at close quarters is quite another thing ; and it 
is possible that a man might lose his nerve or become unsteady 
through over-excitement when the result of a badly placed 
small-bore bullet might end in disaster. The use of heavy rifles, 
however, reduces to a minimum the danger of following up 
such dangerous game into thick bush or long tangled grass. A 
large-bore spherical bullet driven by plenty of powder, even if 
it should not strike a vital spot (owing perhaps to the position 
of the beast when fired at, or to the stalker being unable in the 
thick covert to make out what part of the animal he is aiming 
at), will inflict such a tremendous shock upon the system that 
the creature is far less likely to charge than when hit with a 
smal] bullet. A big bullet might knock the beast down, and 
would also knock out of him any inclination he might have to 
charge, whereas a small bullet under the same conditions 
would have little chance of knocking him down, but would only 
inflict further pain and increase his inclination to charge. 
The following is the battery used by myself, and it is one 
which I have found satisfactory :— 
A single 4-bore rifle, weighing 21 lbs., sighted for 50, 100, 
and 150 yards, shooting 12 drams of powder and a spherical 
bullet. 
A double 8-bore rifle, weighing 15 lbs., sighted for 100 
and 200 yards, shooting 12 drams of powder and a spherical 
bullet. . 
A double ‘500 Express, sighted for 100 and 200 yards, 
bored for long bottle-shaped cases, ‘Magnum,’ shooting 6 drams 
of powder and long bullets of three kinds— solid, small-hole, 
and copper-tube. 
A 12-bore shot-gun. 
To the above were added a single ‘450 Express with tele- 
tx 
TS Srey a ee hy ee eS ee 
