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THE EDINBURGH JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY, 



for the preceding species, but is very different both in appearance and dis 

 position. It has never been domesticated nor tamed to labour. Its horns 

 are very remarkable, not for their extraordinary length, but for their roots 

 and base, rugged and uneven, being so unusually broad as to cover the 

 whole forehead, and to impart to it, says Burchell, the appearance of a 

 mass of rock. The expression of the animal is savage and malevolent. 

 Its bulk exceeds that of the Ox ; for though its height is not much greater, 

 it is more robust and strongly built. Its muzzle, when young, is but thinly 

 covered with hair, the withers are high, the tail short. This Buffalo is 

 found in abundance, or rather, used to be found, in Southern Africa, 

 and thence stretches into the interior along the east coast as far as has 

 hitherto been explored ; and this is its only known locality. All travellers 

 are agreed it is dangerous to intrude incautiously into the haunts of the 

 Buffalo, as it is easily irritated, and rushes with blind fury against the ob- 

 ject of offence, bearing all before it. In its native regions it is killed in 

 pitfalls, like many of the larger game, by the natives, but the European 

 makes use of the rifle alone. The following account of a Buffalo hunt is 

 very characteristic of the animal. A party of boors had gone out to hunt 

 a herd of Buffaloes, which were grazing on a piece of marshy ground. As 

 they could not conveniently get within shot of the game without crossing 

 a part of the marsh, which did not afford a safe passage for Horses, they 

 agreed to leave their steeds in charge of their Hottentots, and to advance 

 on foot, thinking that if any of the Buffaloes should turn upon them, it 

 would be easy to escape by retreating across the quagmire, which, though 

 passable for man, would not support the weight of a heavy quadruped. 

 They advanced accordingly, and under covert of the bushes, approached 

 the game with such advantage, that the first volley brought down three 

 of the fattest of the herd, and so severely wounded the great Bull leader, 

 that he dropped on his knees, bellowing furiously. Tliinking him mor- 

 tally wounded, the foremost of the huntsmen issued from the covert, and 

 began reloading his musket as he advanced to give him a f i hing shot ; 

 but no sooner did the infuriated animal see his foe in front of him, than 

 he sprang up and rushed headlong upon him. The man throwing down 

 his heavy gun, fled towards the quagmire ; but the beast was so close 

 upon him, that he despaired of escaping in that direction, and turning 

 suddenly round a clump of copsewood, becan to climb an old mimosa 

 tree which stood at the one side of it. The raging beast, however, was 

 too quick for him, bounding forward with a roar, which my informant de- 

 scribed as being one of the most frightful sounds he ever heard, he caught 

 the unfortunate man with his horns, just as he had nearly escaped his 

 reach, and tossed him into the air with such force, that the body fell 

 dreadfully mangled into a cleft of the tree. The Buffalo ran round the 

 tree once or twice, apparently looking for the man, until weakened with 

 loss of blood, he again sunk on his knees. The rest of the party recov- 

 ering from their confusion, then came up and despatched it, though too 

 late to save their comrade, whose body was hanging in the tree quite dead. 

 . — (Pringle's African Sketches, p. 271.) 



AZARA'S ACCOUNT OF THE " LITTLE MARTIN " OF SOOTH AMERICA. 



We take the following short extract from M. Walckenaer's Edition of the 

 celebrated and unfortunate Azara's " Voyages'' to South America, and 

 hope ere long to introduce the celebrated Naturalist in a more formal man- 

 ner to the intimate acquaintance of our readers : we are sure it will be to 

 their profit and delight. " I have often observed the Little Martin in the 

 woods of Paraguay. It there always flies above the highest trees ; and 

 if, in the plain, it sometimes approaches within thirty or forty feet of the 

 ground, it instantly remounts to its accustomed elevation, so that I have 

 never been able to shoot one. It does not migrate, and is very wild. It 

 scarcely lights either on trees or the ground, but ever is skimming along 

 like the Swallow, sometimes, in passing, catching the spiders hanging from 

 the trees. It is not very unlike the Common Martin in appearance, and 

 is sometimes called the i?ai-Swallow from its resemblance to that crea- 

 ture, both in colour and uncertain flight ; it is, however, more rapid in 

 flight than any other of its race. On the wing it executes every kind of 

 movement ; sometimes merely fluttering, then spreading wide its wings, 

 now mounting high, and then darting off in a straight line or obliquely. It 

 threads the branches with the greatest address, and is so peculiarly des- 

 tined for flying, that it sometimes does not repose for an instant the whole 

 day. 



" From his able and zealous assistant Noseda, Don Azara obtained 

 the following particulars ; I have often pursued these birds, and have 

 never got a shot at one ; not only on account of the rapidity of 

 their flight, but also on account of their great shyness, which pre- 

 vents them from ever coming within gun-shot, and at the same time 

 they are very cunning. Tired of so much useless fatigue, I ordered an 

 Indian to examine if these Martins never perched upon the trees during 

 the hottest part of the day, and also to discover the places where they 

 spent the night. This Indian spent a whole week in the wood, and re- 

 marked that these birds never rested during the day, and that they often 

 mounted quite out of sight. At last, however, he discovered a tree of 



extraordinary dimensions, and very busby, whence he perceved many 

 Martins sallied forth at break of day. He examined this hole ; and hav- 

 ing noticed that a current of air issued from it, he concluded that there 

 might be a second opening, which he discovered near the ground. I so 

 placed myself, that I could see birds enter this domicile. They arrived 

 at sunset in small troops (I counted sixty-two), but so rapidly, they could 

 scarcely be distinguished. I heard their wings striking against the mar- 

 gin of the entrance, and which was so small that they could not obtain 

 admittance with extended wing, although the interior was large enough to 

 permit them to pass two abreast. During the night, I closed both open- 

 ings, and heard the birds flying about in the interior. Next morning the 

 tree was cut down, and forty Martins were taken, the others having es- 

 caped. I examined the interior, and found it was only suited for creepers. 

 Some of the birds 1 put into a cage, and allowed the others to fly about 

 the house. I perceived they could not stand ; and that their crooked, 

 nails, very strong and sharp, afford them many facilities in climbing.' 

 After this follows a very minute noting, after his fashion, of specific cha- 

 racters, which, however, we shall not inflict upon our readers. 



The Common Fowl a Mouse-eater If the following incident is not 



of frequent occurrence, it may be interesting to your readers. The other 

 day, in going along a road near a farm yard, my attention was arrested by 

 a large flock of Hens pursuing with great avidity a Common Field Mouse. 

 Every now and then, as opportunity offered, they made a peck at it, but 

 this produced little impression upon the object of their pursuit, and it at 

 length succeeded in getting into a crevice, behind a post gate, where its 

 vigilant pursuers stood around anxious to renew the attack. A person 

 who was present drove the Mouse from its retreat, when the Hens again 

 commenced the chase ; but as they seemed to make cruel work of it, the 

 Mouse was killed for them, when they all surrounded it, and began to 

 make a meal of its flesh. It was amusing to see the Chickens in this hunt, 

 who, although they joined the party, were evidently quite afraid of their 

 victim, for if it accidentally turned round between their legs, they jumped 

 up and ran away backwards, apparently in a great state of agitation. Mr 

 John Jennings, Jun., of Campsall, to whom the Hens belong, assured me 

 that this was not an uncommon scene, and that the Hens always ate the 

 Mice when they succeeded in killing them.— -Edwin Lankerter, Campsall, 

 Yorkshire, March 20, 1839 (From the Naturalist of April.) 



A Talking Canary. — Such a marvel is now exhibiting in the Cosmo, 

 rama Rooms, in Regent Street, London. The loquacious Canary articu- 

 lates with singular neatness and fluency, and with as much ease and 

 volubility as he warbles, though bis vocabulary, of course, is very limited. 

 In the middle of a snatch of a song, you hear him pronounce these words, 



" Sweet pretty little Dicky," " Pretty Queen," " Dicky dear," and other 



fond appellations bestowed upon him by his Mistress ; he also makes a 

 chirping imitation of a bell ringing, and calls " Mary." — (Spectator.') 



ECCALEOBION, OR THE ARTIFICIAL HATCHING OF CHICKENS. 



A curious exhibition under the name of " Eccaleobion" is about to be 

 opened in London. It is a machine heated by steam, and divided into 

 various compartments for the hatching of birds by artificial heat. There 

 is also another machine, in which eggs of every date, from the time of 

 their being laid, until twenty-one days old, are so placed that by means of 

 a strong artificial light they are rendered transparent, so that the spectator 

 can observe the progress of hatching, from the origin of life in the chicken 

 until its complete formation. One side of the large room in which the 

 exhibition is placed is set apart for the chickens when hatched, and bears 

 the appearance of a miniature poultry yard. The contrivance is an improve- 

 ment on the Egyptian mode of artificial heating in ovens, and is well 

 worth the visit of the Naturalist and the curious (Newspaper para- 

 graph.) 



Shooting Wolves in Russia Two or three sportsmen place them- 

 selves, well armed, in a sledge, and are driven through the roads and tracks 

 jn the woods. As they go along, they pull the ears of a young Pig which 

 they take with them, and make it squeel, while behind the sledge trails a 

 Jong rope, with a wisp of straw at the end of it. The Wolf hears the 

 Pig squeel, and seeing the bundle of straw dancing along over the snow 

 in the moonlight, makes a dart at it, mistaking it for his prey, and thus 

 presents a fair mark to the guns in the sledge, This sport, like all others, 

 has its vicissitudes ; sometimes the disappointment is incurred of a blank 

 night, and sometimes, on the other hand, too much game is started, and 

 the amusement becomes somewhat dangerous. If the sportsmen have 

 not time to pick up the Wolves they kill, the others tear the bodies of 

 their dead companions, and becoming furious, will attack the sledges. 

 A gentleman who lives near this, and who we often see, met with an 

 adventure of this kind sometime ago ; for after making his pig squeel for 

 some time in vain, he at length unexpectedly attracted such a troop of 

 Wolves that he was obliged to fly for safety, and trust to his horse's 

 heels, and he was pursued by 12 or 14 of the ravenous creatures even 

 into the village (Venables' Domestic Scenes in Russia.) 



