Year: 1876




to shoot the leopard through the head,
but, whether owing to trepidation, the
fear of wounding his friend or the
quick motions of the animal, he unfor-
tunately missed. The leopard, aban-
doning its PROSTATE foe, darted with
redcnbled fury upon its new antago-
mist, and so fierce and sudden was the
onset that, before the Boer could stab
it with his hunting. knife, The savage
brute struck him on the head with its
claws, and actually tore the scalp over
his eyes. In this frightful condition,
the hunter grappled with the leopard,
and, struggling for life, they rolled to-
gether down steep declivity. AL
this passed far more rapidly than II
can be described in words. During
this dreadful scene, the hunter first
attacked had started to his feet and
seized his gun, and after reloading it,
he rushed forward to save the life Of
his friend. But it was too late; the
leopard had seized the unfortunate
man by the throat and mangled him
so dreadfully that death was nevita-
BILE; and his comrade (himself severely
woun led) had only the melancholy
satisfaction OF completing the destruc-
tion of the savage beast, already ex-
hausted with the loss of blood from
several deep wounds from the knife of
the expiring huntsman.


Again, another instance of the fe-
rocity of the leopard occurred in the
case of the Missionary Schmidt: This
worthy man had gone out with a
party of Hottentots to another Mora
| Wan station to hnnt some hyenas
which had been very destructive to
their flocks, aud, in company with one
of the men, entered thicket in pur-
suit ofa beast they had wounded.
Instead Of the hyena, however, the
dogs started leopard, which instant
ly sprang on the Hottentot and bore
him to the ground. Mr. Schmidt ran
forward to the aid Of the man with his
gun cooked but, before he could find
an opportunity of firing, the animal
left the Hottentot and flew with fury
at himself. In the scuffle he dropped
the gun, but luckily fell above the
| leopard, with his knee on its stomach.
The animal seized him by the left arm
with its Jaws, and kept striking him
with its paws and tearing his clothes
in tatters from his breast. Schmidt,
however, being powerful man, sue
ceeded, after receiving another severe
bite or two, in selling the leopard by
the throat with his right hand, and
held it down, in spite Of It's desperate
struggle, for a few minutes, aud until
his strength was on the point of giving
way, when Hottentot on the outside
of the Jungle, who heard his cries,
came to the rescue and shot ,the fe-
rocious beast through the heart, 30
that its death was instantaneous
Had any life been left, its dying strug-
giles might still have proven fatal to
Mr.. Schmidt. AS it was, he was so
terribly lacerated that for several
weeks his life was in the greatest dan
ger. The Hottentot who was first at
tackled was less severely wounded, but
his face was so much torn by the
animals talons that his eyes were
filled with blood, and he was unable
to render any aid to the missionary
who had so generously come to his aid.


On one occasion Mr.. Orpen and
President Ca native follower had gone
up the river to shoot sea-cows, when
they fell in with an immense leopard,
which President wounded very badly.
They then sent natives to camp to ask
for dogs, Of which sent them a
couple. In about an hour the ma
tives came running back and said
that Orpen was killed by the leopard.
On further inquiry, however, / found
that he was not really killed, but
fearfully torn and bitten about the
arms and head. They had rashly
taken up the spoor on foot, the dogs
following behind, instead of going in
advance. The consequence of this
was that they came right upon the
beast before they were aware of him,
when Orpen fred and missed him.
The leopard then sprang on his shoul-
ders, and, dashing him to the ground,
lay upon him, growing and lacerat-
ing his hands, arms and head most
:earfnlly. Presently the creature per-
mitted Orpen to rise and come away.


Numerous instances Of hair. breadth
escapes from the leopard are also on
record, among which that of Mofat,
the missionary, is, perhaps, not the
least remarkable, the rather as, in the
avoidance of the threatened danger,
he incurred another of even a more
perilous nature, thus verifying the old
saying, "Out of the frying.pan into