76 THE HIPPOPOTAMUS 



and doubtless wounded from time to time, by a 

 class of so-called " sportsmen " travelling back- 

 ward and forward, they have largely withdrawn 

 from the lower waters of the Zambezi, doubtless 

 seeking, in the less-frequented outlets of the delta 

 and the extensive swamps which lie near its 

 mouth to the south of the great river, that security 

 which its main channels will perhaps never again 

 afford them. But, putting aside the Zambezi and 

 its tributaries, practically every stream of that 

 wide region affords a home and a refuge for this 

 great amphibian, and he can be found in them all 

 by the seeker after specimens. 



Although not occurring in any portion of the 

 globe except in the continent of Africa, the range 

 of the hippopotamus within that enormous 

 division of the earth's surface is extraordinarily 

 wide. From the Nile to the waters of Zululand, 

 and from one side of the continent to the other, 

 it still exists in great numbers wherever sufficient 

 of its favourite element is found to afford it a 

 permanent home. 



The male measures about 14 ft. from the snout 

 to the tip of his tail, and is an immense and heavy 

 animal, coming in point of weight probably next 

 to the elephant, exceeding that of the black, and 

 probably even that of the white, rhinoceros. He 

 has, moreover, the distinction of possessing the 

 largest mouth of any African mammal. A full- 

 grown male would, I feel sure, be found to weigh 

 nearly, if not quite, 4 tons, judging from the 

 difficulty experienced by me some few years ago 

 at Quelimane in getting one hoisted by the steam- 



