A Breath from the Veldt 187 



my horse, I fired, and it fell to the shot, but quickly recovering made off at 

 best pace on three legs. The moment I fired Van Staden took up the running, 

 a plan we found far the best to adopt when the bush was not too thick, as I 

 could then jump on my horse and follow him at once. He would then stop 

 and point out the animal to me as it stood for the second time. In this case 

 the roan only went about loo yards, so I got very close up and rolled 

 her over with a shot in the heart. What I was much surprised at was the 

 noise she made in receiving the bullet — bellowing loudly, almost like a buffalo — 

 as I never heard any of the other antelopes utter a sound under similar 

 circumstances. The roan antelope {Hippotragus equinus ^) at one time ranged 

 from Cape Colony up to Central Africa ; but its southern limit may now be 

 said to be the Northern Transvaal, its western range Damaraland, its northern 

 not yet clearly defined, though the species is said to have been seen as far north 

 as the Masai country. This animal, however, is just as likely as not to have 

 been the nearly allied species " bakeri," which is known to extend to the verge 

 of the Southern Soudan and equatorial provinces. It has, however, according 

 to Mr. Jackson, been obtained near Lamu, opposite Zanzibar. 



On the Veldt the roan has a fine and noble appearance, though it does look 

 a bit " front heavy." It carries its head very finely, but not with the grace and 

 the nobility of the sable. In many respects it resembles its handsomer cousin. 

 Its habits are much the same, being found alike in open or enclosed country, 

 though on the whole it evinces a greater predilection for the great plains with 

 scattered bush, while the sable is fond of climbing about the low rocky hills, 

 or in bush at the base of kopjies. The roan antelope is also a much more 

 regular drinker than the sable, which can go for long periods without requiring 

 water. A troop of the former, if undisturbed, come every evening to about the 

 same spot on some favourite sluit of standing water, while the latter drink 

 irregularly and nearly always about daybreak. 



Although the roan is a very large animal, standing about 5 feet at the 

 shoulder, the dull reddish-grey of its hide makes it very hard to distinguish in 

 bush, and it would often be passed even in the open lands but for its shy nature, 

 which causes it to start lumbering away as soon as it sees a man on a horse. 

 The sable will stand and stare at you quite close sometimes, as much as to say, 

 " Who the devil are you .? " The koodoo will creep under the shadow of a 



1 I do not believe in the old blauwbok of Cape Colony as a good species. The only specimen of this 

 antelope, which is reputed to be extinct, is now in the Paris Museum. It is, I think, only a small, faded, and 

 badly-set-up female roan. 



