144 THE INYALA— THE BUSHBUCK 



nor had I ever the courage to inquire, what the 

 precise features were by which they were so un- 

 erringly recognised and identified, but the state- 

 ments were made with such an impressive 

 visage de circonstance that I felt too subdued to 

 insist upon obscure and wearisome details. 



The Bushbuck, a near relative of the in- 

 yala, carries horns, so far as the males are con- 

 cerned, of similar form but smaller dimensions — 

 15 or 16 inches being considered a very good head 

 — and without, as a rule, the straw-coloured tip. 

 Bushbuck are found all over South, Central, and 

 East Africa, and are handsome, sporting, and, on 

 occasion, aggressive little beasts. The males are 

 of a deep grizzled brown, with a tinge of red upon 

 their white striped and spotted flanks, whilst the 

 hair along the dorsal ridge and on the hind- 

 quarters is rather long. The females are much 

 paler — ^usually of a light reddish yellow — and 

 their body striping is by no means so conspicuous. 

 Both sexes are white under the belly and on the 

 insides of the legs. Whilst the coloration of the 

 bushbuck is one of the most inconstant things in 

 nature, it is, to what extent soever it may vary, 

 always harmonious and handsome. The most 

 southerly representatives of this interesting family 

 are extremely dark-coated, and, if cornered, reck- 

 lessly brave — so much so that, small as this animal 

 is (the weight of a full-grown male would probably 

 be about 90 lbs.), fatal casualties are said to have 

 happened to incautious persons, whilst dogs em- 

 ployed in hunting them are frequently killed in 

 the resulting encounters. As they extend north- 



