MY THREE SEA-COWS. 51 



three large koodoo bulls broke out of a bush, and 

 cantered across a piece of open ground. I fired the 

 first barrel, dropping one dead as I thought, and with 

 the second barrel hit another heavily. He galloped on 

 for about fifty yards, pulled up short, turned round to 

 look at us, began rocking and staggering, and then fell 

 on his flank quite dead. My attention was taken up by 

 him, and I did not reload as rapidly as I should have 

 done. Moyen shouted out, " The other one is getting 

 up." I turned round and saw him struggling to regain 

 his legs, but before I could reload, he managed to rise 

 and gallop off into the bush. 



I can only account for it by my bullet having grazed 

 his spinal cord (probably somewhere about the neck), 

 thus temporarily paralysing or stunning him. 



The koodoo which I killed had a fine head. I would 

 say to all hunters : " Be suspicious of the animal that 

 collapses suddenly to the shot and afterwards begins to 

 struggle ; but have no fears about the animal that runs 

 hard on receiving the shot, and after going a certain dis- 

 tance pulls up and sinks, for he will never rise again ". 



On the fourth day we began to approach the 

 Umlumazi River. We saw several spoors of black 

 rhinoceros, also spoor of a troop of eland. About three 

 in the afternoon we reached the river and set to work at 

 once to make our camp. I was very anxious to explore 

 the river, so after having seen to the camping, I started 

 up stream, at the same time instructing Mataffayen to 

 go down stream and examine spoor. I ordered him not 

 to disturb hippopotami, and not to fire a shot at all 

 within a mile of the river banks, but merely to gather 

 information and return to camp. 



Leaving the two dogs tied up in camp, I strolled off 



