A N A C C I D E N T. 121 



disgust, that I had broken the stock of my guu : the 

 trigger-guard alone held it together. I also saw that a 

 large jackal's or ant-bear's hole, that was concealed by the 

 long grass, was the cause of my horse's mistake. There 

 was no remedy but to ride to the waggons for my second 

 gun : they were not very far distant, and nearly on the 

 line that the elands had just taken. 



I started off without loss of time, and arrived a few 

 minutes after the herd had passed. They had been viewed 

 from the waggons, and I was told that many were badly 

 wounded, and that five of the Dutchmen were well up, 

 and were, as the Kaffirs in delight said, barnie bulalu 

 (much shooting) the elands : the Kaffirs were anticipating 

 a regular cram that night. I stayed only sufficiently long 

 to procure my sound gun, and started in pursuit of the 

 Boers. I was much annoyed at being thus cut out of so 

 fine a chance, and to make up my distance, I let my game 

 little nag go his best over the springy turf that, like 

 rolling waves, lay around. I suddenly noticed some animals 

 nearly a mile distant that looked extremely like elands, 

 and therefore I turned in their direction, which was nearly 

 opposite to that which I had first pursued. 



As I approached them, I made out a couple of bulls 

 and four cow elands, with five or six half-grown calves. 

 They went away as soon as they noticed me, and crossed 

 a little muddy hollow, that seemed soft enough to hold 

 them fast; they got over, however, but sunk to their 

 bellies in the attempt, and came out on the other side 

 with black mud-stockings. I knew that their instinct 

 had shown them the best place for a crossing, and that if 



