The Absence, Then, Both On The Coasts And In The
Interior, Of Any Eruptive Rocks Which Can Have Been Thrown Up Under The
Atmosphere Since The Period When The Tertiary Rocks Began To Be
Accumulated, Is In Concurrence With All The Physical Data As Yet Got
Together.
These demonstrate that, although the geologist finds here none
of those characters of lithological structure and curiously diversified
organic
Remains which enable him to fix the epochs of succession in the
crust of the earth in other quarters of the globe, the interior of South
Africa is unquestionably a grand type of a region which has preserved
its ancient terrestrial conditions during a very long period, unaffected
by any changes except those which are dependent on atmospheric and
meteoric influences.
"If, then, the lower animals and plants of this vast country have gone
on unchanged for a very long period, may we infer that its human
inhabitants are of like antiquity? If so, the Negro may claim as old a
lineage as the Caucasian or Mongolian races. In the absence of any
decisive fact, I forbear, at present, to speculate on this point; but
as, amid the fossil specimens procured by Livingstone and Kirk, there
are fragments of pottery made by human hands, we must wait until some
zealous explorer of Southern Africa shall distinctly bring forward
proofs that the manufactured articles are of the same age as the fossil
bones. In other words, we still require from Africa the same proofs of
the existence of links which bind together the sciences of Geology and
Archaeology which have recently been developed in Europe. Now, if the
unquestioned works of man should be found to be coeval with the remains
of fossilized existing animals in Southern Africa, the travelled
geographer, who has convinced himself of the ancient condition of its
surface, must admit, however unwillingly, that although the black man is
of such very remote antiquity, he has been very stationary in
civilization and in attaining the arts of life, if he be compared with
the Caucasian, the Mongolian, the Red Indian of America, or even with
the aborigines of Polynesia." ("The most remarkable proof of the
inferiority of the Negro, when compared with the Asiatic, is, that
whilst the latter has domesticated the elephant for ages, and rendered
it highly useful to man, the Negro has only slaughtered the animal to
obtain food or ivory.")
CHAPTER XIX.
THE BLACK ANTELOPE.
We continued our voyage down the Nile, at times scudding along with a
fair wind and stream, when a straight portion of the river allowed our
men respite from the oars. This was the termination of the dry season,
in this latitude 7 degrees (end of March); - thus, although the river
was nearly level with the banks, the marshes were tolerably firm, and in
the dryer portions the reeds had been burnt off by the natives. In one
of these cleared places we descried a vast herd of antelopes, numbering
several thousands. The males were black, and carried fine horns, while
the females were reddish-brown and without horns. Never having shot this
species, I landed from the boat, which I ordered to wait in a sheltered
nook, while, accompanied by the boy Saat and Richarn, I took the little
Fletcher 24 rifle and commenced a stalk.
The antelopes did not evince their usual shyness, and with a tolerable
amount of patience I succeeded in getting within about 120 paces of two
splendid black bucks that were separated from the herd; - a patch of
half-burnt reeds afforded a good covering point. The left-hand buck was
in a good position for a shoulder shot, standing with his flank exposed,
but with his head turned towards me. At the crack of the rifle he sprang
upon his hind legs, - gave two or three convulsive bounds, and fell. His
companion went off at full speed, and the left-hand barrel unfortunately
broke his hind leg, as the half-burnt reeds hindered a correct aim.
Reloading, while my men bled the dead buck, I fired a long shot at the
dense mass of antelopes who were now in full retreat at about 600 yards'
distance crowded together in thousands. I heard, or fancied I heard, the
ball strike some object, and as the herd passed on, a reddish object
remained behind that we could hardly distinguish, but on nearer approach
I found a doe lying dead - she had been by chance struck by the ball
through the neck at this great distance. The game being at full speed in
retreat, my sport would have been over had we not at that moment heard
shouts and yells exactly ahead of the vast herd of antelopes. At once
they halted, and we perceived a number of natives, armed with spears and
bows, who had intercepted the herd in their retreat, and who now turned
them by their shouts exactly towards us. The herd came on at full speed;
but seeing us, they slightly altered their line, and rushed along,
thundering over the ground almost in single file, thus occupying a
continuous line of about half a mile in length. Running towards them at
right angles for about a quarter of a mile, I at length arrived at a
white ant-hill about ten feet high; behind this I took my stand within
about seventy yards of the string of antelopes that were filing by at
full gallop. I waited for a buck with fine horns. Several passed, but I
observed better heads in their rear; - they came bounding along.
"Crack!" went the rifle; and a fine buck pitched upon his head. Again
the little Fletcher spoke, and down went another within ten yards of the
first. "A spare gun, Richarn!" and Oswell's Purdey was slipped into my
hand. "Only one barrel is loaded," said Richarn. I saw a splendid buck
coming along with a doe by his side; - she protected him from the shot
as they came on at right angles with the gun; but knowing that the ball
would go through her and reach him on the other side, I fired at her
shoulder, - she fell dead to the shot, but he went off scatheless.
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