264 ADVENTURES IN SOUTH AFRICA. 



teen feet in length, with bodies as large as that of an 

 ox. Returning to the wagons in the evening, I heard 

 Mr. O. engaged with a huge, invincible old bull hippo- 

 potamus. On going to his assistance, and finding that 

 he had expended his ammunition, I attacked the hip- 

 popotamus, which I barely finished with six or eight 

 more shots. 



We rode down the river for several mornings hunt- 

 ing after hippopotami, a great number of which we 

 killed. As the tusks of some of these were very fine, 

 we chopped them out of the jaw-bones, a work of con- 

 siderable difficulty. On the 17th I was attacked with 

 acute rheumatic fever, which kept me to my bed, and 

 gave me excruciating pain. While I lay in this help- 

 less state, Mr. Orpen and Present, who had gone up 

 the river to shoot sea-cows, fell in with an immense 

 male leopard, which the latter wounded very badly. 

 They then sent natives to camp to ask me for dogs, of 

 which I sent them a pair. In about an hour the na- 

 'tives came running to camp and said that Orpen was 

 killed by the leopard. On further inquiry, however, I 

 found that he was not really killed, but fearfully torn 

 and bitten about the arms and head. They had rashly 

 taken up the spoor on foot, the dogs following behind 

 them, instead of going in advance. The consequence 

 of this was, that they came right upon the leopard be- 

 fore they were aware of him, when Orpen fired and 

 missed him. The leopard then sprang on his shoulders, 

 and, dashing him to the ground, lay upon him growl 

 ing and lacerating his hands, arms, and head most fear- 

 fully. Presently the leopard permitted Orpen to rise 

 and come away. Where were the gallant Present and 

 all the natives, that not a man of them moved to assist 

 the unfortunate Orpen ? According to an established 



