66 WILD CATTLE. 



towards the ground, and his tufted tail stretched out 

 behind him. He passed me as I sat on horseback, 

 at about twelve yards' distance ; but his rush had 

 startled my horse, who, usually most steady under 

 fire, or in almost any circumstances of danger and 

 difficulty, became fidgety, and I put my bullets, 

 when I fired, too far back, so that, as I afterwards 

 discovered, I only 'paunched' the bull. 



After loading my gun I hid my horse in a 

 thicket, as I was afraid the wounded bull might charge 

 him if he happened to see him ; and as soon as he 

 was safe I bolted off in the direction where I heard 

 my dogs baying the bull, in a palmetto swTtmp close 

 by. The paunch wounds had probably sickened him, 

 and made him halt so soon. I tried to stalk him 

 through the stunted swamp palmettos, but the ground 

 was soft and I sank ankle-deep, or more, at each 

 step, and as there w^as no tree of any kind to dodge 

 the bull, in the event of my making a bad shot, I 

 thought it w^ould be best to get him upon firmer 

 ground and where the trees were thicker. So I cheered 

 the dogs from the edge of the palmetto swamp, and 

 they soon forced him to leave for more favourable 

 ground, until he came to bay by the side of a large 

 elm. A huge live oak stood about thirty yards from 

 the bull. I crept up under its shelter and fired at 

 him ; but as he was engaged in trying to gore the 

 dogs, and w'as swaying his head from side to side in 



