Hendricks the Hunter Part 8

At length, having surmounted a low ridge, they came suddenly in sight of a herd of wildebeests or gnus, grazing quietly about a mile from them.

Denis was about to dash forward, when Gozo called to him and advised him to make a circuit so as to come upon the herd on the lee side. Turning their horses' heads, therefore, they descended the hill they had just mounted, and keeping under its shelter, made their way northward. They were thus able to get round until they found themselves within a few hundred yards of the herd, in which there could not have been less than sixty or eighty animals. Suddenly, however, the leader of the herd, a fine old fellow with a flowing mane, and a beard descending down his breast, perceived them, and off they dashed at a slashing pace, a cloud of dust marking their course, while the young hunters pursued. Denis led the way, Lionel keeping close after him. Gozo galloped off to the right, intending apparently to get ahead of the herd, and turn them, so as to drive them back and enable the lads with more ease to shoot one or two down. The chase was exciting in the extreme. The wildebeests at first ran well ahead of their pursuers.

"We shall soon be up to them!" cried Denis. "They'll not keep at that pace long together, you'll see."

He was right, for after a run of a couple of miles the animals began to slacken their speed, and at length Gozo was seen far away in the distance, and well ahead, gradually nearing them.

"We'll stop here," cried Denis, as they came to some thick bushes. "We can conceal ourselves, and the wildebeests won't mind the horses, even if they see them."

He and Lionel dismounted, placing their horses behind the bushes, with their reins on the ground, a sign to the well-trained animals that they were not to move from the spot. Percy soon came up, and followed their example. They then knelt down so as to be completely concealed. The herd, now turned by Gozo, came galloping back, not apparently frightened, and in no hurry, for Gozo having accomplished his object, had pulled in his rein so as to allow them to move at a moderate rate.

On the animals came, lashing their sides with their flowing tails.

Sometimes their leader would break away from the ranks, paw the ground, apparently determined to make a headlong charge, should an enemy appear; then suddenly he would face about and rejoin the herd. Then the whole, which had stopped for a short time, would again dash off in wild confusion, enveloping themselves in a cloud of dust which almost completely hid them from view. The young hunters waited with no little anxiety, lest they should take another direction, but on they came towards the bush, which they were about to pa.s.s when Denis whispered to Lionel to fire at the second, while he would take the leader.

"Percy, do you aim at the third; I feel sure you'll hit him in the breast."

Percy could not help smiling, for he felt far from sure of doing anything of the sort, anxious as he was to succeed. The lads held their breath. Denis was the first to fire, and a loud thud told him that his shot had taken effect. Directly afterwards Lionel and Percy pulled their triggers, but with what effect they could not tell, for the herd, frightened by the report, began kicking up the dust, as they scampered off, in a way nearly to conceal them from view. All that could be seen was a confused ma.s.s of prancing heels, whisking tails, and occasionally a few heads.

"Hurrah!" cried Denis; "my fellow is down." Not far from them, where the leader had been seen when Denis fired, it now lay struggling on the ground.

Denis reloaded, and another shot quickly put it out of its misery.

Whether any of the others were hit could not be ascertained, as they all went scampering off together; but Gozo was seen pursuing them, and the report of his rifle showed that he, at all events, considered himself within range of one of them.

Denis at once set to work to skin the animal. Neither Percy nor Lionel could render him much a.s.sistance, and he was very glad when Gozo made his appearance. The Kaffir had shot a wildebeest, he said, but he had come to a.s.sist them in disposing of theirs. It was agreed that the parts of the flesh which were worth preserving should be left in the bush, covered up with branches, so as to prevent the hyenas and jackals from getting at it until their return.

It took them some time, and their task accomplished, they sat down to enjoy some of the food they had brought in their holsters. Although they might without shame have returned to camp, satisfied with their morning's sport, they had a wish to secure some larger and more valuable game. Their patient horses stood all the time cropping the leaves and herbage near them; for gra.s.s, properly speaking, there was none.

Their lunch over and their thirst quenched with some water which they had brought, although there was none for the horses, they again mounted, and continued in the direction they were before going.

They had applied so frequently to the water bottles, that their stock was soon exhausted; but supposing that they should speedily arrive at the river, they did not trouble themselves much about the matter, until they began to feel the unpleasant sensations of extreme thirst. Percy, less accustomed to the climate than his companions, suffered greatly.

"When shall we reach the river?" he exclaimed at last. "My throat feels like a dust bin. I shall choke if I can't pour some liquid down before long."

"Never fear," answered Denis; "just try not to think about it. I'll ask Gozo how far the river is off. It cannot be more than half a mile now, I should think."

The Kaffir, however, did not give a satisfactory answer. It was some time since he had been in that direction, and it might be farther than he supposed.

"Then the faster we push on the better," cried Denis.

"Whollop-ahoo-ahoo! on we go;" but although he whipped his unfortunate steed, the animal refused to move at a quicker pace. All the horses showed signs of suffering. They opened their mouths, turned up their nostrils, and the foam was seen gathering on their lips. They were riding on when, as they were approaching a thicket, a sound, as if a battle was going on between some of the brute creation, reached their ears--roarings, snortings, and bellowings.

"What can produce that tremendous uproar?" cried Percy.

"Gozo says it is a lion belching," answered Lionel; "but there's some other animal, and we must be ready to fire or get out of its way."

They again cautiously rode on.

"A lion! a lion!" cried the Kaffir, and looking over some bushes, they saw in an open s.p.a.ce a large buffalo cow engaged in battle with the monarch of the wilds. Not far off lay the body of a buffalo calf, which at once explained to them the cause of the battle. The lion had taken up a position not far from some trees and thick bushes, whose branches were elevated but a short distance from the ground. The buffalo stood with her horns ready to receive her antagonist. Suddenly the lion bounded forward, fixing his powerful claws on the face and neck of the buffalo, when instantly, in spite of his weight, she turned, and rushing at the boughs, in a moment the lion was thrown off, and lay on his back with his claws in the air. Furiously the buffalo charged at him, pounding away with her horns in a manner which made it seem impossible that any life would be left in him. While the buffalo was retreating to make another charge, the lion, managing to roll himself over, recovered his feet. The buffalo received him as before, on her head. He in vain endeavoured to reach her hinder quarters, and once more she bore him into the brushwood. In an instant he was knocked off with a crash which it seemed must have broken every bone in his body; but he was soon again on his feet. This was more than the lion could stand, and, coward as he was at heart, finding himself thus defeated in his object, he took to flight, pursued by the buffalo, who went dashing away after him through the bush.

Gozo immediately dismounted, and stealing forward, dragged the calf into the bush.

"Gozo is determined that the lion shan't benefit, even if he escapes the buffalo's horns," observed Denis. "Let's keep out of the way, and we shall see what will next happen." Presently the buffalo came back, looking about everywhere for her calf; but not observing it, naturally supposed that the lion had carried it off, and consequently away she dashed again in pursuit of the still fugitive king of the wilds.

"The big cowardly cat! I wish that she may overtake him, and give him a pounding which will knock the breath out of his body entirely!" cried Denis.

"What! do you call the lion a cat?" exclaimed Percy.

"To be sure I do. What is he but 'Felis leo'? which means the cat lion, as you know, in Latin. He is more cowardly, too, than most cats, for he'll never attack either a man or a beast unless he thinks he has a good chance of coming off the victor. I have not forgotten an unpleasant morning I spent once up a tree, with a couple of lions and their cubs rampaging round me; and if it had not been for my father and Hendricks, I should have been there still, at all events my bones would, for nothing would have induced me to come down and be torn to pieces by the brutes. It was a day or two after Hendricks found you, Lionel, and our friends Mangaleesu and Kalinda made a wonderful escape from their enemies which you have heard of."

"What do you mean by finding Lionel? I thought he was the son of Hendricks," said Percy.

"So I am his adopted son," answered Lionel. "At first Hendricks thought that my parents might be Dutch boers; when Denis however tried to teach me English, I remembered so many English words that he was convinced they were English people; but although he has endeavoured to discover them for my sake rather than for his own, he has never yet succeeded in finding even the slightest clue as to who they could be."

"How very curious!" said Percy. "When I get home to my father and mother, I must tell them all about it. They will be much interested, and I hope, Lionel, that you will come and see them."

"I should like to do so very much, if Hendricks will let me," said Lionel. "But he wants me to accompany him on this expedition, that I may become as great a hunter as he is, and that is just what I should like to be. I am sure, therefore, that he will not allow me to stay with your family longer than the one night we shall outspan at the farm, as we have had so many delays that he is in a hurry to push on."

The conversation was interrupted by a loud crashing of the underwood, and the lion was seen bleeding from numerous wounds, springing on over all impediments, with the buffalo in the distance, still pursuing him.

He took no notice of the party on horseback, except to turn slightly aside as he came near them. He was too far beyond range to enable either Denis or Gozo to hit him. Although the buffalo came much nearer, Denis would not injure the n.o.ble brute; but the Kaffir would have tried to kill her, had not he and Lionel shouted out to him not to fire. The lion had not made many bounds forward when he fell. He managed, however, again to get himself on his feet, and was once more going on when the buffalo got up to him, and striking his hinder quarters with her horns, sent him flying, heels over head; then dashing forward, she struck him again and again before he had time to bring his claws into play.

"Hurrah! she's done for him!" cried Denis, as the brave animal was seen b.u.t.ting and then trampling on the carcase of the lion. "We had better let her enjoy her victory without interference; for probably, being in a combative mood, she may run a muck at us, and we shall be under the painful necessity of shooting her."

Just as he was speaking, Lionel shouted--

"Look out! look out!" and the brave buffalo, catching sight of the horses, and probably fancying that they were fresh enemies, came dashing through the underwood towards them. Denis had only just time to throw himself from his horse, Gozo having already dismounted, when the enraged animal was close upon them. Percy galloped off on one side and Lionel on the other. Denis fired, aiming at the buffalo, as did Gozo immediately afterwards, but Denis's bullet flattened against her hard skull, and although Gozo wounded her in the neck, she came on. Denis fully expected to be tossed into the air or trampled to death, when Lionel's horse standing stock still, he raised his rifle and pulled the trigger. The bullet struck the buffalo, and must have entered her heart, for she at that instant fell so close to Denis, that he narrowly escaped an awkward p.r.o.ng from her horns directed towards him.

"Bravo, Lionel! you did that well, and many thanks to you for it," he exclaimed. "Hendricks will be as delighted to hear of it, as I am that you took so true an aim."

"I am very glad I brought the beast down," said Lionel, "though I would rather she had shown her discretion by keeping clear of us. Poor brute, she deserved a better fate."

Gozo, however, who was influenced by no such feelings, immediately set to work to cut up the buffalo, and to preserve some of the more valuable parts of the meat, but Denis suggested that in consequence of the state of irritation the creature had been in, it could not be wholesome.

The Kaffir, however, laughed at this notion, and declared that it would make no difference. Denis begged that he would be quick about it, as Percy especially was suffering from thirst.

The Kaffir suggested that he should drink some of the blood, but Percy naturally shuddered at the idea, and declared that the very thought of it made him feel less thirsty.

"A proof that you are not dying of thirst," observed Denis. "However, you are perfectly right. The chances are, had you followed Gozo's advice, you would have been made very ill."

The Kaffir having secured a portion of the meat in a tree, and covered it over with part of the hide, some boughs being placed on the top of all, they rode on as fast as their tired horses could go in the direction of the stream. They carried some of the meat, both of the buffalo and wildebeest, with them, but to eat it would have been impossible until they had quenched their thirst.

At last Gozo shouted out, "See, see! there is the water!" and they caught sight below them of a stream glittering in the sun as it wound its way through the broad valley. Their horses appeared to have seen it also, for they moved forward with more alacrity than heretofore.

Presently, as they rounded a thicket, up sprang just before them a herd of waterbok.

"Whollop-a-hoo!" cried Denis, his usual hunting cry, and he dashed forward. "Venison will be better than tough wildebeest or heated buffalo meat."

Reining in, as he was close to the animals, he fired, and brought one of them down.

"Hurrah!" cried his companions.

"We must have another!" he exclaimed. "Lionel, see what you can do.

Gozo, stop and look after the beast I have shot;" and he rode forward, loading as he went.