176 START A HYiENA. 



approach, the old ones immediately sprang with 

 open mouth towards me, making a snap at the stick 

 by which I endeavoured to keep them at a distance, 

 at the same time uttering a surprising roar, which 

 was re-echoed by the Hottentots as they jumped 

 about highly amused at the encounter. After some 

 little difficulty, however, I succeeded in adding them 

 to my collection. They resemble the bull-frogs of 

 America, and are about the same size, but without 

 the blotches on the back, and have two sharp canine 

 teeth in front of the lower jaw, which the latter do 

 not possess : they were the only specimens which I 

 noticed during the journey. 



Before we left this place, we were invited by the 

 wife of a neighbouring boor, named Kruger, to visit 

 their farm, a few miles distant: we readily complied 

 with her invitation. Her husband was from home, but 

 we were kindly entertained by the son, who accom- 

 panied me on the next day up a steep and rugged 

 mountain in expectation of starting a leopard ; but after 

 a most fatiguing ramble over sharp projecting rocks, 

 we began to descend, when we observed, at some 

 little distance, several antelopes of the description 

 called roode-rheebok, which were running up the 

 mountain. We fired ; and disturbed a large hysena 

 that appeared to have been reposing near us : it 

 came hobbling down the hill, over the loose stones, 

 but in consequence of having just discharged our 

 guns, we were not prepared immediately to give it a 



