334 
THE NEW AFRICA 
fighting for priority, until the beast expires, when they attack 
the carcass from every point available to them. The astonish¬ 
ing rapidity with which they will devour a carcase has often 
excited the wonder of those who have not seen it before. In ten 
minutes I have seen a flock of them clear off the flesh from a 
carcass of a wildebeest or koodoo so well, that nothing but the 
skull containing the brain and bones remained as a souvenir of 
their visit. From smaller game, such as the rooibuck, I have 
seen them take out the brain with a few powerful strokes of 
their cruel-looking beaks so cleanly, that it made one thank 
Providence for not gifting these birds with an instinct to attack 
healthy living beings. 
From all that has been said, it is not difficult to arrive at the 
conclusion that aasvogels hunt by sight alone, and that scent 
plays a very subordinate part, if any, in their existences. 
While the meat of our giraffes was qualifying as biltong, 
preparatory to being transported to the lake, we passed the 
time in skirmishing around the neighbourhood after guinea-fowl 
and small game, to supply us with a change of diet. Stremboom 
had two dogs, crossbred from a deerhound and one of the ordi¬ 
nary sharp-nosed native dogs, which seemed to be gifted with a 
little of all the qualities necessary for hunting, except that they 
would not stand to game. While we were out only a short distance 
from camp, a panther, that had evidently been lured into the 
neighbourhood by the scent of meat, took refuge in a tree from 
the dogs, who attracted us by their loud barking towards the 
spot. This was a real panther, and not a specimen of the larger 
kind of leopard, often misnamed tiger in South Africa. He was 
lying along the stem of a thick branch, looking wickedly down, 
and hissing at the dogs as we approached. In the moment he 
saw us his manner changed. The defiance he had been spitting at 
the dogs ceased, and, with a stealthy gliding motion, he slipped 
half round the branch to cover his body, leaving only his claws, 
arms, and the top of his tail exposed to sight. Good little 
Stremboom, who, with all his other cheerful qualities, was a 
jealous shot, hurriedly claimed the first fire, which, of course, he 
