Taher Sheriff Explained That At All Times The Rhinoceros Was The
Most Difficult Animal To Sabre, On Account Of His Extraordinary
Swiftness, And, Although He Had Killed Many With The Sword, It
Was Always After A Long And Fatiguing Hunt:
At the close of
which, the animal becoming tired, generally turned to bay, in
which case one hunter occupied his attention, while another
galloped up behind, and severed the hamstring.
The rhinoceros,
unlike the elephant, can go very well upon three legs, which
enhances the danger, as one cut will not utterly disable him.
There is only one species of this animal in Abyssinia; this is
the two-horned black rhinoceros, known in South Africa as the
keitloa. This animal is generally five feet six inches to five
feet eight inches high at the shoulder, and, although so bulky
and heavily built, it is extremely active, as our long and
fruitless hunt had exemplified. The skin is about half the
thickness of that of the hippopotamus, but of extreme toughness
and closeness of texture; when dried and polished it resembles
horn. Unlike the Indian species of rhinoceros, the black variety
of Africa is free from folds, and the hide fits smoothly on the
body like that of the buffalo. This two-horned black species is
exceedingly vicious; it is one of the very few animals that will
generally assume the offensive; it considers all creatures to be
enemies, and, although it is not acute in either sight or
hearing, it possesses so wonderful a power of scent, that it will
detect a stranger at a distance of five or six hundred yards
should the wind be favourable.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 355 of 556
Words from 96489 to 96765
of 151461
