40 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WA YS 
CHAP. 
the man you liked ; he is gone ; we were wading 
together across the canal by the dock where Reis 
Mahomet was killed ; the water is only waist deep, 
but a tremendous crocodile rushed like a steamboat 
from the river, seized Said by the waist, and dis¬ 
appeared. He’s dragged into the river, and I’ve 
run here to tell you the bad news.” 
We immediately hurried to the spot. The sur¬ 
face of the river was calm, and unruffled in the 
stillness of a fine night. The canal was quiet, 
and appeared as though it had never been disturbed. 
The man who had lost his companion sat down, 
and sobbed aloud. Said, who was one of my best 
men, was indeed gone for ever. 
There were many accidents among the natives, 
which may easily be imagined, as they were con¬ 
tinually in the habit of swimming across the river 
when accompanying their herds of cattle. Upon 
these occasions the crocodiles usually extorted a toll, 
and sometimes they took a proprietor instead of 
being satisfied with a cow. 
A curious incident occurred, which thoroughly 
exemplified “the biter bit,” and I should imagine 
that such an event has very rarely taken place. 
I had three large cows with exceedingly long 
horns, which I had brought from the Bor tribe to 
Gondokoro. These were totally different from the 
small and active cattle of the Bari, and they were 
regarded with great admiration by the natives. 
When I was about to leave for the interior, I con¬ 
fided these valuable animals to the especial care of a 
