THE DUIKERS 157 



and suffering to the pretty, inoffensive little beast. 

 I have, therefore, in shooting duiker and small 

 buck adhered for some years to a most reliable 

 little -220 rook rifle which has proved admirably 

 suited to this form of sport. 



The straight, sharp-pointed horns of these 

 small animals, which reach, in some cases, about 

 4 inches in length, are sometimes, though ex- 

 ceptionally, carried by females. It is, however, 

 extremely difficult, if not impossible, on their 

 bolting, when they invariably go straight away at 

 a tremendous pace, to distinguish, in the shade 

 of the forest, whether the animal carries horns 

 or not. 



Duiker are usually seen in pairs or singly. 

 They are often found at prodigious distances from 

 water, and I am convinced are able to dispense 

 with it over long intervals of time. This I 

 account for by the tremendous drenching dews 

 of winter, which, until as late as ten o'clock in 

 the forenoon, saturate vegetation of every descrip- 

 tion. The act of feeding, therefore, would furnish 

 this small animal with sufficient liquid to enable 

 him in the winter season easily to go for days 

 without drinking, as that habit is usually under- 

 stood, whilst in the summer, of course, the entire 

 face of the country presents suitable drinking 

 facilities within a few hundred yards of each 

 other. 



Duikers are the most delightful of pets, and 

 become so tame that they can be taught various 

 accomplishments. When I resided at Beira a 

 few years ago I possessed a female of the grey 



