252 



A Breath from the Veldt 



wheeled round and stopped, giving me time to get near and give him two more 

 bullets, the second of which found the right place in his neck. This was not 

 the best animal we had seen in the troop, but he carried a nice curved head of 



36 inches. 



After the grallock and bushing up the carcases we continued our journey, 

 much pleased with our morning's work, and trudged on for another two hours 

 over an open country. The burning heat of the sun now fell upon us with all 

 its force, so we were obliged to lie down for a couple of hours and refresh our- 

 selves. Presently Clas climbed a tree, and informed us we were close to the 



KAFFIRS CUTTING UP AND SKINNING A KOODOO BULL 



pan, as in fact was apparent from much old spoor of koodoos, sable, and roan 

 antelopes ; but nothing in the external features of the country indicated the 

 presence of water, so we were rather surprised when the youth led us over a 

 rise on to a small open space, in the middle of which a large bunch of reeds 

 denoted the usual water-hole. There had evidently been water there within 

 three or four days of our arrival, as the surface of the mud was still damp and 

 slimy ; but its absence now showed plainly enough that no rhinoceri were 

 about. We were descending towards the pan, on either side of which was the 

 whitened surface of salt bed, when Clas subsided again on his haunches, 

 exclaiming in a whisper, " Tolo " (koodoo) ; and there sure enough were two 

 koodoo bulls walking slowly away within seventy yards of us. One of the two 



