WILD LIFE ACROSS THE WORLD 



bank and watched hippos' snouts. Not once during 

 the first part of the time did I get an opportunity of 

 taking a photograph, much less of making a record 

 with the kinematograph camera. My hiding-place was 

 some fift}^ yards from the water's edge, and I am 

 ceitain that there were usually forty hippo within a 

 hundred yards of me. Yet the moment I drew near 

 in the morning there would be a mighty grunting, 

 and every one of the animals would sink out of sight. 

 There did not appear to be any wind — at least, I 

 thought there was none — but after wasting several 

 days at this futile game I made some very careful tests 

 with dust, and discovered that there really was a faint 

 breeze blowing in their direction. They must have 

 scented me all the time. 



Late one afternoon, after I had decided to give 

 up work for the rest of the day, I was strolling back 

 to camp along the river bank, when I spied a leopard 

 creeping along the opposite bank in front of me, 

 keeping close to the water's edge under some over- 

 hanging branches. He did not seem to be aware of my 

 presence — at any rate, he took no notice of me — but 

 sprang on to a bough and cHmbed down right over 

 the stream. 



At once I got my machine to work on him. When 

 he was well out on the bough he began to make a most 

 peculiar noise, at the same time striking downwards 

 with his paw. Then I discovered the reason for his 



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