THE OX. 
Vll 
HISTORY. 
the animal, give him a sullen and malignant aspect. His ears are shaggy and pendent, and about a foot in length, and are fre¬ 
quently found to be jagged and rent by the sharp spines of the dense and tangled brushwood through which he forces a passage. 
The Hottentots believe that the animals belong to demons, and that the rents in the ears are the marks by which these supernatural 
beings distinguish their own cattle. The hide is thick, black, tough, and covered with wiry hairs. On the throat, and along the 
dewlap, is a beard of stiff hairs, and on the neck and spine a scanty mane : the tail is bare, with a tuft at its extremity. 
These animals dwell in small herds in woods and thickets, though sometimes they unite in larger bodies, as of 150 or more 
together. They delight in moisture, passing hours in pools of water, and rolling themselves in mud. They are described by tra¬ 
vellers as savage, treacherous, and vindictive. The bull, it is said, will lurk behind the covert of thickets, and rush on the unwary 
traveller, whose only hope of safety is to reach a tree, should one happily be near. He cannot save himself by flight, for the 
furious brute quickly overtakes him, throws him to the earth, tramples upon him with his feet, and crushes him to death with his 
knees. Nay, it is said that, after having mangled his victim, the creature retires to a distance, and then returns again and again 
with increased ferocity, as if to gratify by repetition his thirst of vengeance. The account of the animal’s lurking behind thickets 
is doubtless incorrect, for it is not the nature of herbivorous animals to prey on other creatures from a desire of blood. And with 
respect to his treachery and cruelty, it is to be asked—who, in the eye of humanity and reason, is the most treacherous and cruel, 
the traveller and stranger who steals upon the lonely animal in his native haunt to shed his blood, or the victim who uses the 
powers which Nature has given him to protect himself from slaughter ? 
Sparrman describes an encounter with several of these animals on the Great Fish River. The party advanced within twenty 
yards of one of them, when, actuated in some degree by their fears, they discharged their pieces nearly at the same time. The 
Buffalo, who had just turned his head round as if about to assault the intruders, fell on the discharge of the pieces, but, rising 
again, ran to the thickest part of the wood. Supposing that the shot was mortal, the travellers, in their hurry and ignorance of 
the danger, followed the animal into the thicket; but they found, in the sequel, that the balls had only struck him on the spine 
and stunned him, and been shivered to pieces on the bones. The travellers, now joined by their Hottentots, endeavoured to find 
out his retreat in the vale below; but the animal, having recovered his surprise, came forth of his own accord to the skirts of the 
wood, and faced his assailants, who, happily for them, had the advantage of the higher ground. Three shots were instantly fired, 
and one, entering the belly, proved mortal. The Buffalo again retreated to the shelter of the vale, dyeing the ground and bushes 
all the way as he went with his blood. The hunters followed with the utmost caution through the thin and pervious part of the 
thicket. Again their victim advanced to make an attack, but one of the party, from the place where he was posted, had the for¬ 
tune to lodge a shot in the lungs; yet still the wounded animal had the strength to make a circuit of 150 paces before he fell. 
“ During his fall, and before he died,” continues the narration, “ he bellowed in a most stupendous manner, and this death-song 
of his inspired every one of us with joy, on account of the victory we had gained: and so thoroughly steeled is frequently the 
human heart against the sufferings of the brute creation, that we hastened forward to enjoy the pleasure of seeing the Buffalo 
struggle with the pangs of death. I happened to be foremost amongst them, and I think it impossible for anguish, accompanied 
by a savage fierceness, to be painted in stronger colours than they were upon the face of this Buffalo. I was within ten steps of 
him when he perceived me, and, bellowing, raised himself suddenly again upon his legs.” The traveller was so terrified, that, 
hastily firing his piece, his shot missed the huge animal before him, and he precipitately fled. But it was all over with the poor 
Buffalo; he had made his last effort; he had left to his conquerors the happiness of having shed his blood, by means of deadly 
weapons, which all the vast strength and noble courage with which Nature had endowed him could not enable him to withstand; 
he had left them the privilege of prating of their courage, philosophy, and love of nature, and of his malignity, cruelty, and 
vindictiveness. 
The same and other travellers give numerous accounts of their encounters with these strong and fearless creatures. M. 
Thunberg informs us, that, when travelling in Caffraria, he and his companions had just entered a wood, when they discovered 
a large old Buffalo, lying quite alone in a little space free from bushes. The animal no sooner observed the guide, who went first, 
than he rushed upon him with a dreadful roar. The man was able to turn his horse quickly round a large tree, when the furious 
beast rushed upon the next of the party, and gored his horse so dreadfully in the belly, that he died soon after. The two men 
fled to trees, and when the furious creature rushed on towards the next of the party, a horse without a rider chanced to be in 
front; the Buffalo attacked him with such fury, that he drove his horns through the horse’s breast, and out again through the 
very saddle. The horse was thrown to the ground with dreadful violence, and instantly died. Thunberg, coming up at the 
moment, found himself in the way of the enraged animal, but, from the narrowness of the path, he had no room to turn. He 
abandoned his horse, and took refuge in a tree. But the Buffalo had now done : on killing the second horse, he turned suddenly 
about and retreated to the covert. 
