140 THE MAN-EATERS OF TSAVO CHAP. 
for I could almost have touched his broad back 
as he passed. It was under these exasperating 
conditions that I saw a hippo for the first time, and 
without doubt he is the ugliest and most forbidding 
looking brute I have ever beheld. 
The moment the great beast had passed our tree, 
he scented us, snorted loudly, and dived into the 
bushes close by, smashing through them like a 
traction engine. In screwing myself round to 
watch him go, I broke the creepers by which I was 
holding on and landed on my back in the sand at 
the foot of the tree—none the worse for my short 
drop, but considerably startled at the thought that 
the hippo might come back at any moment. [| 
climbed up to my perch again without loss of time, 
but he was evidently as much frightened as I was, 
and returned no more. Shortly after this we saw 
two rhino come down to the river to drink ; they 
were too far off for a shot, however, so I did not 
disturb them, and they gradually waddled up-stream 
out of sight. Then we heard the awe-inspiring 
roar of a hungry lion close by, and_ presently 
another hippo gave forth his tooting challenge a 
littlke way down the river. As there seemed no 
likelihood of getting a shot at him from our tree, I 
made up my mind to stalk him on foot, so we both 
descended from our perch and made our way slowly 
through the trees in the semi-darkness, There 
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