The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-07-23
A RHINOCEROS HUNT.
Great Sport as Described by Rider
Haggard in a"Harper's" for July.

vi 01I SpOII dS OCotA lOCA Wy AeA0SA
Haggard in "Harper's" for July
Taking my eight-bore and half a dozen
spare cartridges in my pocket, l made
a detour, and reaching the ant-heapin safe
ty, lay down. For a moment the wind had
dropped, but presently gentle puff Of air
passed over me and blew on towards the
rhipoceros. By the way, wonder what it
is that smells so strong about a mane Is it
his body or his breathe | have never been
able to make out, but | saw somewhere the
other day that in the duck decoys the man
who is working the ducks holds little
piece of burning turf before his mouth and
that if he does this they cannot smell him,
which looks as though it were the breath.
Well, whatever it was about me that at
tracted his attention, the rhinoceros soon
smelt me, and within a half minute after
the puff off wind had passed he was up and
turning round to get his head up wind
There he stood for a few seconds and shifted,
and then he began to move, first OF all at a
trot; then as the scent grew stronger, at
furious gallop. On he came, suortiug like
a runaway engine, with his tail stuck
straight up in the air; if he had seen me lie
down there, he could not have made bet
ter linea 1t was rather nervous work, l can
tell you, lying there waiting for his on
slaught for he looked like a mountain of
flesh determined, however, not TO fire
until | could plainly see his eye, for think
that rule always gives one theright distance
for big game. so | rested my rifle on the
ant-heap and waited for him, kneeling. At
last, when he was about forty yards away,
| saw that the time had come, and aiming
straight for the middle of the chest, |
pulled.
Thud went the heavy bullet, and with a
tremendous snort over rolled the rhlnoce-
ros beneath its shock. just like a shot rabbit.
But if had thought that he was done for
was mistaken, for in another second he was
up and coming at me as hard as ever, only
with his head held low | waited till he
was within ten yards. in the hope that he
would expose his chest, but he would do
no hing of the sort. So just had to fire at
his head with the left barrel, and take my
chance. Well, as luck would have it, of
course the animal put its horn III the way
of the bullet, which cut clean through it
about three inches above the root, and then
glanced off into space. After that things
got rather serious My gun was empty
and the rhinoceros was rapidly arriving
so rapidly, indeed, that | came to the con
cuson that had better make way for him.
Accordingly | jumped to my feet and ran
to tho right as hard as | could go. As did
so he arrived full tilt, and knocked my
friendly ant-heap fiat, and for the second
time that day went most magnificent
cropper. This gave me few seconds start,
and ran down the wind--nly word, | did
run Unfortunately, however, my modest
retreat was observed, and the rhinoceros,
as soon. as he got his legs again, set to work
to run after me-
Now no man on earth can run as fast as
an iritrated rhinoceros can gallop, and |
knew that he must soon catch me up. But
having some slight experience of this sort of
thing, |, luckily for myself, kept my head
and as | fled | managed to open my rifle
get the old cartridges out, and put two
fresh ones in. To do this | had to steady
my pace little, and by the time that had
snapped toe rifle to, l heard him snorting
and laundering away within a few PAGES of
my back. l stopped, and as l did so rapid
ly cooked the rifle, and slowed round upon
my heel. By this time the brute was with
in six or seven yards of me, but luckily his
head was up. l lifted the rife and fred at
him. 1t was a snap shot, but the bullet
struck him in the chest within three inches of
the first, and found its way into his lung'
1t did not stop him, however; so all could
do was TO bound to one side, which | did
with surprising activity, and as he brushed
past me fire the other barrel into his side
That did for him. The ball passed in behind
the shoulder and right through his heart
Tie fell over on to bis side, gave one most
awful squeal-a dozsn pigs could not have
made such a noise-and promptly died.
As for me, | blew my nose, and going up
to She rhinocerOs, sat on his head and re-
fiected that l had had a capital mornings
SbOOtiugr