STALKING THREE ANIMALS. 157 



perfectly steady, and our hearts beat with the ordinary pulsa- 

 tion. I carried a new double 10-bore poly-grooved rifle made 

 for me by Westley-Eichards, under the special care of the 

 late " Bishop of Bond Street," than which a better weapon 

 was never made, for with steel-tipped conical bullets weigh- 

 ing 2J ounces, it has done great things with big game of all 

 kinds during a long course of years, remaining to this day 

 as good as it ever was. My friend P. was an admirer of 

 much smaller bores ; arguing that penetration, which was the 

 main object, was as fully attained by a bullet weighing an 

 ounce with its proper allowance of powder, as with one of 

 double or treble that weight. I feel bound to state that 

 about the time I write of, P. had maintained his position 

 " on principle," like the gentleman in " Pickwick," who, to 

 prove that crumpets were wholesome, and not liable to shorten 

 life as his doctor predicted, bought half-a-crown's worth and 

 having eaten them all blew out his brains, demonstrating 

 plainly that crumpets did not kill him, so P. who had lost 

 through this pet theory more large game than would set up 

 for life a modern Nimrod, being a man of great discernment 

 too, must have seen the practical results of it long ere this ; 

 still "on principle" he had brought out on that day a 16-bore 

 rifle, throwing a bolted pellet weighing an ounce, and with 

 this light pea-shooter set about proving the (in)correctness 

 of his theory of penetration. 



When both were ready each selected his bull. The loud 

 smack of my bullet had not corne back to my ears before 

 mine, taken behind the shoulder, dropped in his tracks, but 

 struggling up again on his legs received a second shot which 

 killed him outright. P. had fired and also struck his bull 

 fairly, but the latter made off at a gallop with his un wounded 

 companion. 



Our horses being brought up smartly, I left my friend to 

 look after his wounded bull, and passing them at speed fol- 

 lowed the other which made such good time over the ground 

 as to push my mare to her best pace. I was mounted that 

 day on a young thorough-bred, a trifle under fifteen hands, 



