BUFFALO. 
21 
seldom passes an opportunity of indulging himself ; 
and even in India, where he is domesticated, the 
drivers are in continual fear, when he crosses a river, 
that he will he down with his load. 
The violent and impetuous disposition of the buf- 
falo is such, that the inhabitants are exceedingly 
afraid of him, and, unless numerous, seldom dare to 
attack him openly : he is no sooner wounded, than 
he becomes the most furious and formidable animal 
that can be imagined ; nothing stops his career till 
he overtakes the object of his revenge ; when, not 
content with the death of the unfortunate person, 
he will return to the slaughtered body, stand over it 
for a time, trample on it, crush it with his knees, 
and deliberately mangle the remains with his 
horns and teeth. This sort of insult the buffalo 
will repeat at certain intervals, till the corpse is 
completely disfigured, and he has nearly stript off 
the skin with his tongue. He frequents the bor- 
ders of woods ; and as his sight is not very good, 
he remains there with his head placed near the 
ground, that he may be enabled to distinguish ob- 
jects among the roots of the trees. Whenever he 
perceives any disagreeable object near him, even a 
piece of red cloth (for which he has a singular 
aversion), he darts suddenly upon it, bellowing 
hideously at the same time with a tone much deeper 
and stronger than that of the bull. A large herd of 
wild buffaloes grazing together on a plain in the in- 
terior of Africa, presented to Dr. Thunberg a very 
terrific spectacle. He and his companions, when 
