XXII 



HUNTING-DOGS, LYNXES, CATS, AND OTHERS 



ONE of the most \dvi(;l recollections of scenes from 

 animal life in Africa, which crowd my memory, 

 is that of the fleet hunting-dogs chasing their prey. 

 Like phantoms they appeared in the wild steppe, near 

 the paths of caravans, near the coast, and in the reed 

 thickets of the rivers, running after their prey in long 

 leaps, three or four, on its very heels, others beside and 

 behind to intercept it should the victim turn their way. 

 Like a flash they came and went before one had time 

 to recover from the surprise. 



I met with the wild dog (Lycaon pidiis) but rarely in 

 the parts of German East Africa through which I trav- 

 elled. I am told that it is just as rare an animal in 

 British East Africa. The wild honde, as the Dutch 

 call the hunting-dog, preys on ah kinds of game, e\'en 

 the larger antelopes. Near the railroad station, Kor- 

 rogave, I saw a few chasing a water-buck. Once I ob- 

 served a pack of fourteen galloping behind an eland 

 antelope. 



Another time, in 1899, when following the tracks of 



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