The Others Came Back To It,
And, When We Showed Ourselves, Much To The Amusement Of My Companions,
They Lifted Him Up With Their Horns, And, Half Supporting Him In The Crowd,
Bore Him Away.
All these wild animals usually gore a wounded companion,
and expel him from the herd; even zebras bite and kick
an unfortunate or a diseased one.
It is intended by this instinct
that none but the perfect and healthy ones should propagate the species.
In this case they manifested their usual propensity to gore the wounded,
but our appearance at that moment caused them to take flight,
and this, with the goring being continued a little, gave my men the impression
that they were helping away their wounded companion. He was shot between
the fourth and fifth ribs; the ball passed through both lungs and a rib
on the opposite side, and then lodged beneath the skin. But, though it was
eight ounces in weight, yet he ran off some distance, and was secured
only by the people driving him into a pool of water and killing him there
with their spears. The herd ran away in the direction of our camp,
and then came bounding past us again. We took refuge on a large ant-hill,
and as they rushed by us at full gallop I had a good opportunity of seeing
that the leader of a herd of about sixty was an old cow;
all the others allowed her a full half-length in their front.
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