This Will
Show That The Character Of A Wild Buffalo Can Never Be Depended Upon;
And If The Pursuit Is Followed Up As A Sport By Itself, The Nature Of
The Animal Cannot Be Judged By The Individual Behaviour Of Any
Particular Beast.
Some will fight and some will fly, and no one can tell
which will take place; it is at the option of the beast.
Caution and
good shooting, combined with heavy rifles, are necessary. Without heavy
metal the sport would be superlatively dangerous if regularly followed
up. Many persons kill a wild buffalo every now and then; but I have
never met with a single sportsman in Ceylon who has devoted himself to
the pursuit as a separate sport. Unless this is done the real character
of buffaloes in general must remain unknown. It may, however, be
considered as a rule with few exceptions that the buffaloes seldom
commence the attack unless pursued. Their instinct at once tells them
whether the man advancing towards them over the plain comes as an enemy.
They may then attack; but if unmolested they will generally retreat,
and, like all men of true courage, they will never seek a quarrel, and
never give in when it is forced upon them. Many descriptions of my
encounters with these animals may appear to militate against this
theory, but they are the exceptions that I have met with; the fierce
look of defiance and the quick tossing of the head may appear to portend
a charge, but the animals are generally satisfied with this
demonstration, and retreat.
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