174 
HUNTING IN THE SOT1K [ch. viii 
invariably seen around the base of a small hill a couple 
of miles south-west of us. The latter was usually in 
the company of a mixed herd of Roberts’ and Thomson’s 
gazelles. Here, as everywhere, we found the different 
species of game associating freely with one another. 
One little party interested us much. It consisted of 
two Roberts’ bucks, two Roberts’ does, and one Thom¬ 
son’s doe, which was evidently a maitresse femme , of 
strongly individualized character. The four big gazelles 
had completely surrendered their judgment to that of 
the little tommy doe. She was the acknowledged 
leader: when she started they started and followed in 
whatever direction she led ; when she stopped they 
stopped ; if she found a given piece of pasture good, 
upon it they grazed contentedly. Around this camp 
the topi were as common as hartebeest; they might be 
found singly, or in small parties, perhaps merely of a 
bull, a cow, and a calf; or they might be mixed with 
zebra, wildebeest, and hartebeest. Like the hartebeest, 
but less frequently, they would mount ant-hills to get 
a better look over the country. The wildebeest were 
extraordinarily tenacious of life, and the hartebeest and 
topi only less so. I more than once had sharp runs on 
horseback after wounded individuals of all three kinds. 
On one occasion I wounded a wildebeest bull a couple 
of miles from camp. I was riding my zebra-shaped brown 
pony, who galloped well; and after a sharp run through 
the bush I overhauled the wildebeest; but when I 
jumped off, the pony bolted for camp, and as he 
disappeared in one direction my game disappeared in 
the other. 
At last a day came when I saw a rhino with a big 
body and a good horn. We had been riding for a 
couple of hours ; the game was all around us. Two 
