Arizona republican., 1903-09-16

stood still, but what he did was to
fling down his gun and make back for
the river. He had pretty near half a
mile to go and he was a good sprinter,
but that rhino had a full head of sail
on him.
He came on like a ship running be-
fore a hurricane, and about ten rods
from the bank he overlook the fleeing
man and tossed him ten feet into the
air. AS the body came down he caught
it and tossed it again, and then flung
it in way that could have left no life
in it after three or four minutes.
The other chaps pluckilv ran down
and fired two bullets apiece into the
beast, but when he charged them they
made a bolt for and climbed the tree
under which he had been standing at
first. When he found them beyond his
reach the rhino began running about in
circle, and it was then that we clear
ed away one OF the nine-pounders and
opened fire on him. AS he was on the
move the first two shells didn't, even
throw dirt on him. but the third struck
him fair amidships and exploded.
another boat was sent ashore. and I
| was one of those who landed from it.
| We found the surveyor dead, and with
every bone broken. and rs for the
rhino, he was a sight to see. He had
been blown into five large and about a
score of smaller pieces, and his snout
| and horn had been carried at least 200
feet away.
| 1.-TWO nights after that, and twenty
miles above, we anchored in midstream
for the night. and up to midnight things
passed off very quietly. Then a troop
| OF elephants came down to the shore to
drink. 1t was in my watch and 1 count
ed fourteen big fellows and two kids.
They were just opposite us and not over
forty rods away, but were not at all
alarmed by our presence.
| After drinking and splashing around
for While two big bulls got into row.
couldn't make out the cause of it, but
they hadn't been scrapping over two
minutes when the rest of The herd join
| ed in, and there was a row to beat the
band. Some of the officers brought
| their rifles on deck and opened fire, and
the captain ordered us to raise 4 shout.
but the elephants had got their mad up
and couldn't be frightened off by pop
guns. Then we were ordered to slew
a nine FOUNDER around on the mob. Il
was loaded with a percussion shell, and
target was too big to be missed at that
| short distance. That shell went through
| one elephant from port to starbOard
without bursting, but it struck big
| hone in the next and exploded and kill
ed two others and wounded three. The
| dead Oh. 5 lay right there in the water
next morning while the wounded ones
had dragged themselves up the bank
! and We're lying down. We landed to
look them over, and finding them badly
hurt they were put cut of their misery
with bullets from the rifles.
"Iou may say that this wasn't exact
| ly hunting, but I'll relate an incident
that was.
| ION our return down the river we
had anchored one day to complete the
survey of a shoal. when a big lion came
stalking out of the cover of a thicket
and stood watching us. He was long
rifle shot away, and the four or five
shots fired at him failed to disturb his
peace of mind. In fact. he lay down in
his tracks with his head on his paws
and calmly sized us up.
| LAS the survey men were busy the
captain ordered a gun cast loose and 1
was the man behind it. My first shot
went over his majesty and he rose up
|
| got the range, and, depressing the
muzzle little, let go my second shot
and there was no longer any lion there.
/ can't say whether l hit him or the
ground directly in front of him. but it
was all the same. Those who were
looking through their glasses saw the
air darkened with fragments of lion,
and the king of beasts was turned into
| plum duff for the jackals to feast on.
| lone more incident, and I'll up helm
and bear off.
| 1--WE came down the one river and
| went up the other. One day, when we
| were steaming along at about rifle shot
| from the left bank, we came upon q
, war party of blacks travelling the same
| way White men were apparently no
novelty to them, but though we gave
them no excuse whatever, they soon
| began whooping and yelling and defy
| ing us This continued fer half an hour.
and there was one fellow, probably the
| chief, whose gestures were most insult
| ing. Three or fo;r shots Were finally
| fired at the band to scare them off,
but they didn't scare. On the contrary.
| they grew more and more defiant, and
l the chief seemed to be performing. di-
rectly at the captain.
| Word was quietly passed forward to
! clear away and aim at the chief. He
| was five rods ahead of his party and
/ dancing bout and shouting insults
| when the shell left the gun. The man
who fired it was good shot, but luck
had much to do with his aim on that
/ occasion The missile struck at the
feet of the chief Ind exploded, and if
his friends ever found as much as his
1 teeth it is more than I think fer. He
simply evaporated in a great splash.