The Sauk Centre herald., 1909-06-17

l had missed him from his &C.
customed stations and on his re-
appearance he was generally BAN
daged I'D and one leg was in
, splints 1t appears that one late after
noon when the shadows in the brush
were growing to the point of almost
complete darkness though the sun
still Illuminated the tops of the trees,
he was returning to camp alone save
' for a Senegambian gun bearer noted
for his bravery. Both were mounted
on native ponies, wiry and keen OF
senses. Suddenly Williams pony be-
gan to snuf1e and snort and both
stood stock still refusing to advance
into the darkness of the foliage
arched trail Williams quickly un-
slung a double barrelled ten gauge
Parker with which he had been after
fowl. He meant to slip in a buck shot
cartridge, but before he more than
had his gun across his pommel, with
a grunting below the huge form OF
an old bull buffalo rushed out of the
darkness ahead and charged the two
with all ferocity.
l.
way and all that Williams. could do
was to lean forward and pull both
barrels point blank. The massive
horns and frontal bones must have
shielded the beast from any injury,
save enough to infuriate 1t more than
ever The next instant Williams
pony was disemboweled with side
swipe of the bulls horns and the
rider was pitched into the brush with
a broken leg On over the dying
pony rushed the buffalo and his
charge drove the second pony end
over end on top of his Senegambian
rider The two rifles he carried few
into the brush and one fell near Will
Jams. 1t was the Winchester forty
four. Williams dragged himself over
to 1t and found 1t uninjured, but a
tragedy was transpiring meanwhile,
Giving the poor gun bearer no chance
for his life, the bull swept first one
tip of his mighty horns and then the
other into the tumble OF hors, and
man and in his blind fury knelt on
them and stamped on them. This
happened in the fraction of a minute
of course, and was terminated only
when Williams, mastering all his
strength, rose to his knees and began
pumping soft-nosed pellets into the
bulls flank, raking him forward into
vital parts. The murderous creature
fell on top of his victims and when
searchers attracted by Williams
. cries, found them. horse. bull and
Senegambian lay dead in one heap.
Most Dangerous Game in Africa.
1t is agreed upon all hands by ex-
perienced hunters in Africa that the
buffalo is one of the three most dan
gerous four-footed foes that man can
attack. Most men class this animal
with elephants and lions, as game that
requires the highest attributes of skill
courage and caution to bring to bag.
AS a matter of fact, it may be laid
down that more deaths and dangerous
accidents happen annually in Africa
in hunting the buffalo tnan in the
chase of any other species Of heavy
game. In regions where large num-
bers of these splendid beasts still wan
der, in troops of three hundred, four
hundred and even more, and where
they have been little disturbed, the
Hunter has no great difficulty in shoot
ing as many as he requires. In fairly
open country, where scattered covert
exists. and where they can be readily
approximation they are by no means
keen-sighted creatures-a man may,
he begins to think, shoot buffaloes as
easily as he can shoot oxen. But,
directly buffalo is wounded and his
blood-spoor has to be taken up, and
the hunter has to follow him into the
dense coverts to which he retreats,
the business is entirely changed. Then
you may prepare to lo-k out for your
self, to take up your heaviest and
most reliable weapon, and to follow
the track of your game with every
sense alert. and your rifle handy for
an instant anG most deadly caargs.