612 



THE BOSCH TASK. 



A naval officer who had experienced several encounters with this creature, spoke of it with 

 great respect, and seemed to hold its warlike abilities in some awe. The adult male Baby- 

 roussa is considerably larger than the boar of England, and the officer above mentioned told 

 me that he had seen them as large as donkeys. It is a very good swimmer, and will take 

 to the water for its own gratification, swimming considerable distances without any apparent 

 effort. 



The skin of the Babyroussa is rather smooth, being sparsely covered with short bristly 

 hairs. The object of the upper tusks is at present unknown, although certain old writers 

 asserted that the animal was accustomed to suspend himself to branches by means of the 

 appendage. The Babyroussa lives in herds of considerable size, and is found inhabiting the 

 marshy parts of its native land. 





'— "Jr *» -S5U 2?te "-- — 



BABYKODSSA— Porcus babirmsa. 



The Bosch Vark, or Bush Hog, of Southern Africa is a very formidable animal in 

 aspect as well as in character, the heavy, lowering look, the projecting tusks, and the callous 

 protuberance on the cheek, giving it a ferocious expression which is no way belied by the 

 savage and sullen temper of the animal. The Bosch Vark inhabits the forests, and is generally 

 found lying in excavations or hollows in the ground, from which it is apt to rush if suddenly 

 disturbed, and to work dire vengeance upon its foe. In color it is extremely variable, some 

 species being of a uniform dark brown, others of a brown variegated with white, while others 

 are tinged with bright chestnut. The young is richly mottled with yellow and brown. For 

 the following account of the habits of the Bosch Vark I am indebted to Captain Dray- 

 son's MS. 



" Where the locality is sufficiently retired and wooded to afford shelter to the bush bucks 

 which I have mentioned, we may generally expect to find traces of the Bush Pig. His spoor 

 is like the letter M without the horizontal marks, the extremities of the toes forming two sepa- 

 rate points, which is not the case with the antelopes, at least very rarely so, the general 

 impression of their feet being like the letter A with a division down the centre, thus /t\. 



