144 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WA YS 
CHAP. 
“ Rakooba,” or raised square, ascended by a broad 
flight of six or seven steps, when I heard a great 
noise at the farther end of the courtyard, and I saw 
the bricks falling from the wall, showing that the boars 
were once more breaking out. Before the men had 
time to interfere, the large boar had effected a 
breach, and it appeared in the courtyard. The 
people immediately retreated under shelter, but the 
brute, having surveyed the scene, perceived us 
sitting above the flight of steps, exactly opposite. 
Without a moment’s hesitation it charged at full 
speed across the yard, from a distance of about 60 
paces. The Rakooba was about 15 feet square, and, 
as we had lately arrived from Abyssinia, there were 
numerous trophies of the chase arranged around the 
pavement; among these were many horns of 
rhinoceros. Fortunately a long horn weighing 
about 10 lbs. was close at hand ; this I immediately 
seized with both hands, and was just in time, when 
the boar was half-way up the steps, to hurl it with 
all my strength. 
It was a lucky shot, the heavy horn struck exactly 
between the eyes, in the forehead, and knocked the 
assailant down the steps, at" the bottom of which it 
lay, kicking convulsively, but thoroughly stunned, 
and unconscious. My men now rushed forward, 
and we secured the fore and hind legs with ropes, 
and dragged it to a neighbouring store, the door of 
which we locked. The remaining boar was not 
particularly vicious, and we secured it within another 
sty. 
