ANTELOPES. 89 
bution of animals over the surface of the earth; and 
it is rendered still more interesting by the fact, that 
of the Deer tribe, the genus of Ruminating animals, 
which, next to the antelopes, is most abundant in spe- 
cies, two only out of nearly thirty species are known 
to exist in any part of this continent, and even these 
confined to the valleys of the Atlas Mountains. 
«* Generally speaking, the antelopes are gregarious 
and unite in large herds, either permanently, or at 
particular seasons of the year, but only for the sake 
of migrating in search of more abundant and grate- 
ful pasturage ; some species, however, reside in pairs 
or small families, consisting of an old male and one 
or more females, with the young of the two fore- 
going seasons. ‘They are always extremely cautious 
in guarding against surprise, placing sentinels in 
various directions about their feeding ground, to 
warn them of the approach of danger, while grazing 
or reposing ; and their vision and sense of smell are 
so acute, that it is only by using the greatest caution 
and circumspection that the hunter can bring them 
within range of the gun. The names by which the 
animals themselves are distinguished in all lan- 
guages, ancient as well as modern, have a direct 
reference to this quickness of sight, and to the bril- 
lianey of the large black eyes, which form so con- 
spicuous a feature in the antelopes. Thus the word 
dorcas (dopxac), the Greek and Roman name of the 
gazelle, or common Barbary antelope, is derived 
