52 



CLASS M A M M A L I A. 



ORDER R UMINANTIA. 



2. CAPRA (Lat. carpo, I crop). Horns bending upwards and back- 

 wards, almost close at their base ; chin generally furnished with a long 

 beard. 



3. OVTS (Lat. avis, Sheep). Incisive teeth eight in the lower jaw, 

 forming a perfect arc, and touching each other by their sides, none in the 

 upper ; molar six on each side in each jaw ; forehead more or less arched ; 

 horns large, angular, furrowed transversely, spirally twisted, and turning 

 outwards ; no tear-pits or beard ; legs slender ; tail variable in length, pen- 

 dulous. 



4. Bos (Gr. /3oOc, on Oar). Horns bending out laterally, and forwards, 

 upwards or downwards ; muzzle large ; no upper incisor nor any canine 

 teeth ; skin of the neck pendulous ; limbs large and unwieldy. 



CAVICORNIA. DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIES. 



ANTILOPE. This genus forms, in the opinion of Pennant, " an interme- 

 diate genus, a link between the Goat and Deer ; agreeing with the former 

 in the texture of their horns, which have a core in them, and are never 

 cast ; and with the latter in elegance of form and swiftness." They form a 

 very large genus. 



They live in large herds of two or three thousand, or in small parties of 

 five or six, and generally in hilly countries, browsing like goats, and living 

 on the tender shoots of trees. They are elegantly formed, active, restless, 

 shy, and uncommonly swift, running with vast bounds, and leaping with 

 surprising agility. The chace of them is a favourite diversion in the east, 

 where they are not only hunted with the greyhound and hunting leopard, 

 but also with the falcon, which is trained for that purpose. The pursuit 

 of the Chamois, which belongs to this genus, is a favourite diversion of the 

 Swiss ; and the fatigue and dangers they undergo in that chace are well 

 known. 



The horns of the Antelope genus are composed of solid bony processes 

 attached to the os frontis, similar to those of the deer kind, but covered 

 with horn, and not deciduous : in other respects they are similar to that 

 genus ; generally, though not always, having the lachrymal fossae, or tear-pits. 



They have been divided into sections from the form of their horns, both 

 by Pennant and Cuvier : the division of the latter is adopted here. 



1 . Horns annulated, having a double or triple curve, and pointing for- 

 wards, downwards, or upwards. 



Under this division we find the following : the Common Antelope (A. 

 Cervicapra), represented on Plate 20. This animal is rather smaller than 

 a fallow deer ; the horns, about sixteen inches long, are black, distinctly 

 annulated, and have three curves. The animal is of a reddish brown above, 

 and white below ; around the orbits of the eyes is white, which is con- 

 tinued into a white patch on either side of the forehead ; the muzzle is 

 black. The female is known by having no horns, and by a white stripe 

 on the flanks. 



The Barbary Antelope (A. Dorcas), which measures about three feet 

 , nine inches from nose to tail, and two feet four inches high. " The fleet- 

 ness of the Antelope," says Pennant, " was proverbial in the country it 

 inhabited, even in the earliest times: the speed of Asahel (2 Sam. ii. 18) 

 is beautifully compared to the Tzebi ; and the Gadites were said to be as 

 swift as the Antelopes (translated ' roes ') upon the mountains. The sacred 

 writers took their similes from such objects as were before the eyes of the 

 people to whom they were addressed. There is another instance drawn 

 from the same subject. The disciple raised to life at Joppa was supposed 

 to have been called Tabitha, or Dorcas, from the beauty of her eyes ; and 

 to this day, one of the highest compliments that can be paid to female 

 beauty in the eastern region is Aine el Gazel, You have the eyes of an 

 Antelope." 



The Flat-horned Antelope (A. Kevella), similar in form to the above ; 

 the White-faced Antelope (A. Pygarga), larger than the preceding; the 

 YeBoui Goat of the Chinese (A. Gutturosa), as large as the stag; the 

 Scythian Antelope (A. Saiga) ; the Senegal Antelope (A. Senegalensis) ; the 

 Gambian Antelope (A. Lerwia) ; and the Springbok (A. Euchore). 



" The Springbok of the Cape," says Mr. Gordon Cumming, " is so termed 



by the colonists on account of its peculiar habit of springing or taking 

 extraordinary bounds, rising to an incredible height in the air when pur- 

 sued. The extraordinary manner in which Springboks are capable of 

 springing is best seen when they are chased by a dog. On these occasions 

 away start the herd, with a succession of strange perpendicular bounds, 

 rising with curved loins high into the air, and at the same time elevating 

 the snowy folds of long white hair on their haunches and along their back, 

 which imparts to them a peculiar fairy-like appearance, different from any 

 other animal. They bound to the height of ten or twelve feet, with the 

 elasticity of an India-rubber ball, clearing at each spring from twelve to 

 fifteen feet of ground, without apparently the slightest exertion. In per- 

 forming the spring, they appear for an instant as if suspended in the air, 

 when down come all four feet again together, and, striking the plain, away 

 they soar again as if about to take flight. The herd only adopt this mo- 

 tion for a few hundred yards, when they subside into a light elastic trot, 

 arching their graceful necks and lowering their noses to the ground, as if in 

 sportive mood. Presently pulling up, they face about, and reconnoitre the 

 object of their alarm. In crossing any path or waggon-road on which men 

 have lately trod, the Springbok invariably clears it by a single surprising 

 bound ; and when a herd of perhaps many thousands have to cross a track 

 of the sort, it is extremely beautiful to see how each Antelope performs 

 this feat, so suspicious are they of the ground on which their enemy, man, 

 has trodden. They bound in a similar manner when passing to leeward of 

 a lion, or any other animal of which they entertain an instinctive dread. 



" The accumulated masses of living creatures which the Springboks 

 exhibit on the greater migrations is utterly astounding, and any traveller 

 witnessing it as I have, and giving a true description of what he has seen, 

 can hardly expect to be believed, so marvellous is the scene. 



"They have been well and truly compared to the wasting swarms of 

 locusts, so familiar to the traveller in this land of wonders. Like them, 

 they consume every green thing in their course, laying waste vast districts 

 in a few hours, and ruining in a single night the fruits of the farmer's toil. 

 The course adopted by the Antelopes is generally such as to bring them 

 back to their own country by a route different from that by which they set 

 out. Thus their line of march sometimes forms something like a vast oval, 

 or an extensive square, of which the diameter may be some hundred miles, 

 and the time occupied in this migration may vary from six months to a 

 year." 



2. Horns annulated, having a double curve, differing in direction from 

 the preceding section, and having the points turned backwards. 



Species the Cervine Antelope, the Haute-beest of the Dutch (A. 

 Babalis), larger and more clumsy than the other species of Antelope, par- 

 taking of the stag and heifer, with a large head, broad thick nose, and a 

 reddish-brown coat : is common in Barbary and Northern Africa. 



The Caama Antelope, Cape Stag of the Dutch (A. Caama), is very like 

 the preceding : common at the Cape. 



3. Horns annulated and straight, or but slightly curved. 



Species the Copra Gazella (A. Oryx), called also the Egyptian Ante- 

 lope, and by the Dutch the Cape Chamois (Plate 20). The Oryx is thus 

 described by Mr. Cumming : 



" The Oryx, or Gemsbok, is about the most beautiful and remarkable of 

 all the Antelope tribe. It is the animal which is supposed to have given 

 rise to the fable of the Unicorn, from its long straight horns, when seen, en 

 profile, so exactly covering one another as to give it the appearance of 

 having but one. It possesses the erect mane, long sweeping black tail, and 

 general appearance of the Horse, with the head and hoofs of an Antelope. 

 It is robust in its form, squarely and compactly built, and very noble in its 

 bearing. Its height is about that of an Ass, and in colour it slightly resem- 

 bles that animal. The beautiful black bands which eccentrically adorn its 

 head, giving it the appearance of wearing a stall-collar, together with the 

 manner in which the rump and thighs are painted, impart to it a character 

 peculiar to itself. The adult male measures 3 feet 10 indies in height at 

 the shoulder. 



" The Gemsbok was destined by nature to adorn the parched karroos 



