Chap, II. 
o 
if the East In b i 
E S. 
far from being difficult- to avoid it, provided a Man has a 
tolerable Prefence of Mind ; for the Rhinoceros feeing only 
ftraight forward, and turning being very troublefome, 
linking twice or thrice out of the Road, is fufficient to 
efcape all Danger: For this Creature very rarely turns 
back, or changes his Path, but deftroys, without Mercy, 
whatever he finds in it a . - 
The general Name of this Creature, in the Indies, is 
Akada and in Per ft an, it is called Kerkeden , much esteemed 
for the Virtues of its Horn : And therefore, notwithftand- 
ing the Danger of the Exercife, induftrioufly hunted by 
the Natives of the Country, who, when they are fo lucky 
as to kill it, fuflfer nothing to be loft, but apply every Part 
of it to fome Ufe or other. The Flefh is faid to be hard 
and ftringy, but, in other refpedts, wholfome and well- 
tafted j fo that the Europeans eat it readily, and think it no 
contemptible Venifon. 
The Horn is extremely precious, and fells at a great 
Rate, from the Property it is fuppofed to have, of dif- 
Covering Poifon : The Fa6t is univerfally believed in the 
Indies , and a Man would be as much laughed at there for 
doubting it, as he would be here for believing it : Yet fome' 
Writers of unqueftionable Credit, have afferted the Truth 
of this from their own Knowledge, particularly Mr. Kol- 
hen , who affures us, that, at the Cape of Good Hope , they 
: make Cups of this Horn, which are finely adorned with 
‘ Gold or Silver , and that, upon pouring Wine into them, 
a great Ebullition follows j but, if there be any Poifon 
mixed with the Wine, the Cup infallibly breaks, as it alfo 
; does, if the Poifon be put in unmixed. The Experiment, we 
are told, has been made fo frequently, and with fuch con- 
ftant Succefs, that Thoufands of Perfons fettled at the Cape 
of Good Hope , might be produced, as Witneffes to the 
Truth of it b . 
For my own Part, I muft confefs, that I think italmoft 
: as difficult to believe, that Mr. Kolben himfelf, or 'any other 
Writer of Reputation, fhould endeavour to impofe upon 
! Mankind by fuch a Report, if there was no Truth in it, 
as to beliefe the Fad. I therefore incline to think, that 
the Relation is only delivered in too general Terms ; and 
fchai, inftead bi afferting, that this Horn breaks, on the 
pouring into a Cup made of it any kind of Poifon, an Xn- 
quiry ought to be made, what fort of Poifon really breaks 
it ? For I very much fufped, that if we knew what kind 
or Poifon it is, we fhould be able to account for -it from 
natural Cauies : And I am the rather led to this Opinion, 
from what the fame Author tells us, of the bubbling or 
boiling of Wine, when poured into the fame Cup. 
. The Indians ^ fancy, that, in fplitting the Horn, they 
difeern, on each Side, the figure of a Man, marked out 
tby littie white Spots as alio Birds of feveraf Kinds, as we 
Tee in Egyptian Pebbles'-: But, without doubt, this is the 
Rffed of a very ftrong Fancy, with regard to both. It 
is,^ however, highly probable, that, as it ferves to raife the 
Price of this Commodity, it alfo ferves to fupport its Cre- 
dit-, for the more Wonders -are reported of anything, the 
fmore readily the common People believe them. In the 
jilOand of Java, where there are many of thefe Creatures, 
they are moft valued, and the Virtues of their Horns in 
the higheft Efteem fo that when they are fent to be turned 
they always order a Perfon to ftand by, to colled the 
Shavings, that no Part may be loft ; For of this fort of 
(Ivory, they give a certain Quantity, boiled in Water, or 
pri Broth, for Convuhions, Fainting-fits, and other Difeafes 
that proceed from Diforders in the Nerves. The Blood 
ikewTe, of this Animal, is held to be extremely medici- 
mai: And therefore, when it can be got frefh, they fet it 
nm a Cup made of the Rhinoceros’s Horn, in the Sun, till 
Sit grows hard I and then they preferve it in a Bottle clofe- 
ijftoppea, for the following Ufes : They conceive it to be a 
^Specific for all Obftrudions, and, at the fame, admirable 
for healing- and confolidating broken Veffels ; but, above 
ad, it is held an infallible Cure for the Spitting of Blood. 
1 he manner of taking it is, by mixing a few Grains of the 
Blood, in a Difli of Tea or Coffee. 
It is moft certain, that, on the ’firft coming of the Eu- 
s Defeription d n Cap? de Bonne Ejfperance , Fo/. iji. p. T 6 
auxlndes, p. Hiji. Animal, lib., vi. 
M U M B. 0 2. ' 
ropeans into thefe Countries, they found the People yml- 
verbally perfuaded of the Efficacy of thefe Drugs : And we 
are told by the famous John Hugo Linfchoten , one of the 
moft candid Writers on this Subjed, that in Bengal the 
Rhinoceros Horn was fold at a very high Price, He tells 
us likewife home other Circumftances, that deferve to be 
mentioned : 4 Thefe Homs, fays he, are much valued 
till ougnout all India , as effectual Remedies againft Venom 
‘ * nd Poir ° n ’ % which, likewife, the Teeth, Claws.; 
riefli, Skin, Blood, Urine, and Dung, of this Animal* 
are likewife much valued: And that this is not an idle 
. Motion, but an Opinion founded in Truth, I can, from 
c own Experience, atteft. I here is, however, one 
; thing, which is to be remembered, that all thefe Horns 
are not of equal, Value and Price, becaufe all of them are 
not of equal Goodnefs ; for forne will fell for 200 or 
6 3 00 Fa [i does > while others of the fame Size and C a- 
lour wul not fetch above three or four Pardoes The 
‘ Eeafon which the Natives affign for this Difference, is 
their foeding in different Places j for they believe, that 
the Virtue or the Horn is derived from the Herbs by 
which the Creature is nourifhed ; and therefore, the# 
‘ have almoft an equal Efteem for the Horns of the wild 
‘ Goats that feed in the fame Places d . 5 
I fliall conclude this Account with the Relation of Fa- 
ther Borri , in his Account of Cochin-China, as to the Hunt- 
ing of the Abadd, which, however, he deferibes as covered 
over with Scales ; tho’ this might, perhaps, arife, from his 
feeing him only at a Diftance. His Account is curious ; 
and therefore I fhalJ give it in the Author’s own Words 
the rather becaufe it not only confirms many things before 
related, but farm foes us alfo with fome Particulars that 
are new. 4 When I was at Niioctnon, a City in the Pro- 
vince of Pulucambi , fays he, the Governor Went out to 
hunt a Rhinoceros, that was in a Wood near ourDwel- 
6 ]in S-P lace = He had with him above an hundred Men, 
fome on Foot, and fome on Horfeback ; and eight or 
ten Elephants. The Rhinoceros came out of the Wood - 
‘ a ? d ’ fedn § fo man y Enemies, was fo far from givino- an y 
t okens of Fear, that it furioufly encountered them all 
‘ who opened and making a Line, let the Rhinoceros run 
through, till it came to the Rear, where the Governor 
c was mounted on his Elephant, v/aiting to kill it. The 
£ Elephant endeavoured to lay hold with his Trunk but 
could not, by reafon of the Rhinoceros’s Swiftnefs * 
‘ ^nd taping, to wound the Elephant with its Horn the 
‘ Governor knowing it could receive no Hurt, by reafon 
of the Scales, unlefs they ftruck it on the Side, waited^ 
till leaping it laid open the naked Place ; and, calling a 
Dart, dexteroufly (truck it thro’, from Side to Side - 
witn great Applaufe, and Satisfaction of all the Multi- 
tude 01 Spectators, who, without any more to do laid 
‘ it upon a great Pile of Wood, and, fitting Fire’to it, 
leapt and danced about, while the Scales were burning 
‘ and Heffi roafting cutting Pieces as it roafted, and eal’ 
c mg them. Of the Entrails, * that is, the Heart, Liver, 
and Brain, they made a more dainty Diffi, and o- ave it 
‘ t0 the Governor, who was upon a Rifing-ground di- 
‘ verting himfelf with their Merriment. As I was prefenc 
at the taking of tnis Creature, I obtained from the Go- 
‘ pernor the Hoofr <; which I efteemed not inferior to his 
Horn : And this is thought as effedual in expelling PoL 
fon, as that of the Unicorn.’ This feems to countenance 
my Sentiment, that thefe Horns, as Alcalis, may ferve as 
Remedies for a certain kind of Poifons. 
11 \ 7 ne Eion, of which fo many extraordinary Stories 
are told us by the Antients, is alfo a Native of the Indies 
and more common there than in any other Part of the 
exce P t Libya. The Lion of the true Kind, of 
fim oize, and with a flowing Mane of yellow Hair, is bv 
all Authors acknowledged to be, at once, the moft ma- 
jefuc and the moft dreadful Sight, that is furmfhed by 
the Animal Creation. 1 he Lionels has no Mane* her 
Lars are fhorter and wider ; and (he has more FierceneM 
and lefs Dignity in her Countenance, than the Lion e 9 
b Idem. ibid. p. 1 7. 
JElian. lib. xvii. r. 26. 
* tDrbg lot . Bib got. Orient, p. 95 ^. 
si V ilagH 
it 
