A
tom-cat would almost be a match for him. He has legs which will neither
serve him for pursuit or escape if he is forced to trust only in his
speed. He has strength of limb which is useless without some artificial
weapon. He is an animal who, without the power of reason, could not even
exist in a wild state; his brain alone gives him the strength to support
his title of lord of the creation.
Nevertheless, a lord of the creation does not appear in much majesty
when running for his life from an infuriated buffalo;--the assumed title
sits uneasily upon him when, with scarcely a breath left in his body, he
struggles along till he is ready to drop with fatigue, expecting to be
overtaken at every step. We must certainly have exhibited poor specimens
of the boasted sway of man over the brute creation could a stranger have
witnessed our flight on this occasion.
The next morning we were up at daybreak, and we returned to the
battlefield of the previous evening in the full expectation of seeing
our wounded antagonist lying dead where we had left him. In this we were
disappointed--he was gone, and we never saw him again.
I now had my long two-ounce and my four-ounce rifles with me, and I was
fully prepared for a deep revenge for the disgrace of yesterday.
The morning was clear but cloudy; a heavy thunderstorm during the night
had cooled the air, and the whole plain was glistening with bright
drops; the peacocks were shrieking from the tree-tops and spreading
their gaudy plumage to the cool breeze; and the whole face of nature
seemed refreshed. We felt the same invigorating spirit, and we took a
long survey of the many herds of buffaloes upon the plain before we
could determine which we should first attack.
A large single bull, who had been lying in a swampy hollow unobserved by
us, suddenly sprang up at about three hundred yards' distance, and
slowly cantered off. I tried the long two-ounce rifle at him, but,
taking too great an elevation, I fired over him. The report, however,
had the effect of turning him, and, instead of retreating, he wheeled
round and attempted to pass between the guns and the banks of the lake.
We were about three hundred yards from the water's edge, and he was soon
passing us at full gallop at right angles, about midway or a hundred and
fifty yards distant.
I had twelve drachms of powder in the four-ounce rifle, and I took a
flying shot at his shoulder. No visible effect was produced, and the
ball ricochetted completely across the broad surface of the lake (which
was no more than a mile wide at this part) in continuous splashes. The
gun-bearers said I had fired behind him, but I had distinctly heard the
peculiar 'fut' which a ball makes upon striking an animal, and although
the passage of the ball across the lake appeared remarkable,
nevertheless I felt positive that it had first passed through some
portion of the animal.
Away the bull sped over the plain at unabated speed for about two
hundred paces, when he suddenly turned and charged toward the guns. On
he came for about a hundred yards, but evidently slackening his speed at
every stride. At length he stopped altogether. His mouth was wide open,
and I could now distinguish a mass of bloody foam upon his lips and
nostrils--the ball had in reality passed through his lungs, and, making
its exit from the opposite shoulder, it had even then flown across the
lake. This was the proof of the effect of the twelve drachms of powder.
Having reloaded, I now advanced towards him, and soon arrived within
fifty paces. He was the facsimile of the bull that had chased us on the
previous day--the same picture of fury and determination; and, crouching
low, he advanced a few paces, keeping his eyes fixed upon us as though
we were already his own.
A short cough, accompanied by a rush of blood from his mouth, seemed to
cause him great uneasiness, and he halted.
Again we advanced till within twenty paces of him. I would not fire, as
I saw that he already had enough, and I wished to see how long he could
support a wound through the lungs, as my safety in buffalo-shooting
might in future depend upon this knowledge.
The fury of his spirit seemed to war with death, and, although reeling
with weakness and suffocation, he again attempted to come on. It was his
last effort; his eyes rolled convulsively, he gave a short grunt of
impotent rage, and the next moment he fell upon his back with his heels
in the air; he was stone dead, and game to the last moment.
I had thus commenced a revenge for the insult of yesterday; I had proved
the wonderful power of the four-ounce rifle--a weapon destined to make
great havoc amongst the heavy game of Ceylon.
Upon turning from the carcass before us, we observed to our surprise
that a large herd of buffaloes, that were at a great distance when we
had commenced the attack upon the bull, had now approached to within a
few hundred yards, and were standing in a dense mass, attentively
watching us. Without any delay we advanced towards them, and, upon
arriving within about a hundred paces, we observed that the herd was
headed by two large bulls, one of which was the largest that I had ever
seen.
