The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-10-14
 THE STUPID RHlNOCEROs

From Appletons Magazine
 He is stupid beast-this rhino-appar- ently not using his sight to any great extent, but relying on wonderful sense of smell and a very disturbing ability to hear. Once he strikes a scent that Is irritating to his temper, or hears a sound that dissatisfies him, he takes an instant to decide the direction, and then putting down his huge ugly head so that his big born is ready for business, he charges at the top of his speed in perfectly straight line, making a terrible rumpus over it. You only have to jump few feet to one side or the other and he will go tearing by and keep on going until he is tired. let one go by because conditions did not admit of my stopping him. and then climbed a little tree and followed him with field glass as he tore along in a cloud of dust for over two miles,
 Another time one of the men gave a grunt, spoke the one word "kifaru" and pointed to a black spot half a mile away which under the glass turned out to be one of the strange cumbersome beasts We were Joking for. He showed a very good front horn and the boys both agreed that he was a reasonably good man"
 It was only a few moments when we could hear the rhino moving toward us dead to windward and shifting about in his own peculiar and rather appalling fashion. Suddenly he came directly into the burnt patch perhaps a hundred yards away. The first thing that l noticed now was there were six or seven brown birds perched in 6 row on his back These signal birds-sometimes white, sometimes brown--sit on their big companions back and relieve him of superfiuous ticks So long as they sit there he knows that there is no danger and eats on in peace and quiet. The instant they fly off, as they do on the slightest warning, up comes his big snout and he lets out g succession of sniffs or whistles, caused by his attempt to scent the direction Of the danger; for danger theye is he knows
 On came the beast in a zizzag line until he was not over fifty yards away. Then the birds caught sight of me and flew off Up came the big head and the fun began All was ready except that he was too directly head on for me to get in a shot below the ear, which was what wanted.
 Then he turned into the long grass and we lost sight of him. moved into the long grass also, taking care to keep all ways to leeward. In a moment we could see the top of his back about twenty yards off and I covered the place where his head ought to be with the rifle. Then I got what seemed to be the best sight I might have, especially as twenty yards was about as close as personal comfo.t and ease of mind allowed-and I fired. - He was the first very large animal I had killed. and my first sensation was one of blank astonishment that one bullet could put him out of business so sud- denly and so completely. As a matter of fast. he simply sank down in the grass and was dead before he was fairly stretched on the ground.
 The two natives ran at him at once, De- ing careful to approach him from behind. and grabbing his tall climbed up on his back dancing like madme>s and then we heavy that 1t is not feasible to carry and cut him up. The skull is so big and heavy that it Is nto feasible to carry away the whole head. and we therefore cut away the horns, taking care to get the skin Intact.