A Breath from the Veldt 



2'93 



saddle. I had my eye still on the birds, and seeing them alight on the back of 

 what looked like a sable cow about 150 yards away, I signed to Tace to take a 

 shot, which he accordingly did. The bullet struck the ground at the animal's 

 feet, sending up a cloud of dust and causing it to turn sideways, and show us, 

 instead of an insignificant cow, a remarkably fine bull. This entirely altered my 

 interest in the proceeding ; and I was quickly down the steep bank and into the 



SABLE ANTELOPES HEADS 



sluit before either of my companions had remounted. On reaching the bottom 

 it was most disappointing to find there was no possibility of ascending the 

 farther bank, so I rattled Brenke up the dry bed in a line parallel to that taken 

 by the sable, and towards a point where the bank seemed to shelve downwards. 

 But here again I was baulked of my intent, and obliged to continue along the 

 line of the sluit for several hundred yards till an exit presented itself This, as it 

 turned out, was most fortunate for me ; for on topping the bank I saw the head 



