310 BIG GAME SHOOTING 
THE PAA 
The Paa (4. Xirkiz) is found throughout East Africa in | 
thick and open bush on dry sandy soil. It is exceedingly | 
plentiful on Manda island opposite Lamu, Merereni, the thick — 
bush east of Taveta, and again in Ngaboto in the Suk country. | 
It is the smallest of the East African antelopes, and is usually 
bagged with a shot-gun and No. 5 shot, as it darts about 
among the bush and scrub like a rabbit. The flesh of this 
little beast has a strong flavour of musk and is very disagreeable 
to eat at all times, but in the rutting season is altogether un- 
eatable ; the natives, however, revel in it. Its note of alarm 
is between a shrill whistle and a scream. It feeds on the 
leaves of various shrubs, and doubtless its curious little pre- 
hensile nose is admirably adapted to securing its food. The 
paa is found throughout the year in the driest and most arid 
wildernesses, where for several months there is neither rain nor 
even a drop of standing water for many miles round. It is 
therefore quite evident that the juices of the vegetation on 
which it feeds and the dews at night are sufficient for its 
requirements. The best way to obtain this little beast is to take 
three or four men to act as beaters, and they must thoroughly 
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beat every bush at all likely to hold a buck, as it isin the habit 
of lying very close and takes a good deal to move it, but when 
once started affords capital snap-shots. 
GRAVE ISLAND GAZELLE 
The JV. moschatus, commonly known as ‘Grave Island 
gazelle,’ derives this name from being for a long time only 
obtained on a small island in Zanzibar harbour on which the 
English cemetery is situated. How this little antelope got on 
to this and another small island no one knows, as it is not at 
present known to exist on the islands of Zanzibar or Pemba. 
It is, however, found in the thick bush behind Frere Town, 
the Church Mission station at Mombasa, and also in the 
