The Mission

by Frederick Marryat

  CHAPTER XXI.

  As they fully expected to fall in with a herd of buffaloes as theyproceeded, they started very early on the following morning. They hadnow the satisfaction of finding that the water was plentiful in theriver, and, in some of the large holes which they passed, they heard thesnorting and blowing of the hippopotami, to the great delight of theHottentots, who were very anxious to procure one, being very partial toits flesh.

  As they traveled that day, they fell in with a small party of Bushmen;they were shy at first, but one or two of the women at last approached,and receiving some presents of snuff and tobacco, the others soonjoined; and as they understood from Omrah and the Hottentots that theywere to hunt in the afternoon, they followed the caravan, with the hopesof obtaining food.

  They were a very diminutive race, the women, although very well formed,not being more than four feet high. Their countenances werepleasing,--that is, the young ones; and one or two of them would havebeen pretty, had they not been so disfigured with grease and dirt.Indeed the effluvia from them was so unpleasant, that our travelers wereglad that they should keep at a distance; and Alexander said to Swinton,"Is it true that the lion and other animals prefer a black man to awhite, as being of a higher flavor, Swinton, or is it only a joke?"

  "I should think there must be some truth in the idea," observed theMajor; "for they say that the Bengal tiger will always take a native inpreference to a European."

  "It is, I believe, not to be disputed," replied Swinton, "that for oneEuropean devoured by the lion or other animals, he feasts upon tenHottentots or Bushmen, perhaps more; but I ascribe the cause of his sodoing, not exactly to his perceiving any difference in the flesh of ablack and white man, and indulging his preference. The lion, like manyother beasts of prey, is directed to his game by his scent as well as byhis eye; that is certain. Now I appeal to you, who have got rid of theseBushmen, and who know so well how odoriferous is the skin of aHottentot, whether a lion's nose is not much more likely to be attractedby one of either of these tribes of people, than it would by either youor me. How often, in traveling, have we changed our position, when thewind has borne down upon us the effluvia of the Hottentot who wasdriving?--why that effluvia is borne down with the wind for miles, andis as savory to the lion, I have no doubt, as a beefsteak is to us."

  "There can, I think, be no doubt of that," said Alexander; "but it issaid that they will select a Hottentot from white men."

  "No doubt of it, because they follow up the scent right to the partyfrom whence it emanates. I can give you an instance of it. I was oncetraveling with a Dutch farmer, with his wagon and Hottentots. We unyokedand lay down on the sand for the night; there were the farmer and I, twoHottentot men and a woman--by the by, a very fat one, and whoconsequently was more heated by the journey. During the night a lioncame and carried away the woman from among us all, and by his tracks, aswe found on the following morning, he had passed close to the farmer andmyself."

  "Was the woman killed?"

  "The night was so dark that we could see nothing; we were roused by hershrieks, and seized our guns, but it was of no use. I recollect anotherinstance which was not so tragical. A Hottentot was carried off by alion during the night, wrapped up in his sheep-skin kaross, sleeping, asthey usually do, with his face to the ground. As the lion trotted awaywith him, the fellow contrived to wriggle out of his kaross, and thelion went off only his mantle."

  "Well, I should think one of the karosses must be a very savory morselfor a hungry lion," said the Major;--"but I imagine it is almost time tounyoke; we must have traveled nearly twenty miles, and these forestspromise well for the game we are in search of."

  "I suspect that they contain not only buffaloes, but elephants; however,we shall soon find out by examining the paths down to the river, whichthey make in going for water."

  "I think that yonder knoll would be a good place to fix our encampment,Swinton," said the Major; "it is well shaded with mimosas, and yet clearof the main forest."

  "Well, you are quartermaster-general, and must decide."

  The Major ordered Bremen to arrange the wagons as usual, and turn thecattle out to feed. As soon as this had been accomplished, they saddledtheir horses, and awaited the return of Swanevelt, who had gone toreconnoiter. Shortly afterward he returned, with the report that therewere the tracks of elephants, buffaloes, and lions, in every directionby the river's banks; and as the dogs would now be of use, they wereordered to be let loose, which they seldom were, unless the game waslarge and to be regularly hunted down. Our travelers mounted andproceeded into the forest, accompanied by all the Hottentots except thecattle-keepers and the Bushmen; Bremen, Swanevelt, and Omrah only beingon horseback, as well as themselves. As they rode forward slowly andcautiously at the outset, Swinton asked the Major whether he had evershot buffaloes.

  "Yes, in India," replied the Major; "and desperate animals they are inthat country."

  "I was about to say that you will find them such here; and, Alexander,you must be very careful. In the first place, a leaden bullet is oflittle use against their tough hides, and, I may almost say,impenetrable foreheads. The best shot is under the fore-shoulder."

  "Our balls are hardened with tin," observed Alexander.

  "I know that," replied Swinton; "but still they are most dangerousanimals, especially if you fall in with a single buffalo. It is muchsafer to attack a herd; but we have no time to talk over the matter now,only, as I say, be very careful, and whatever you do, do not approachone which is wounded, even if he be down on his knees. But here comesBremen with news."

  The Hottentot came up and announced that there was a large herd ofbuffaloes on the other side of the hill, and proposed that they shouldtake a sweep round them, so as to drive them toward the river.

  This proposal was considered good, and was acted upon; and, after ridingabout a mile, they gained the position which seemed the most desirable.The dogs were then let loose, and the Hottentots on foot, spreadthemselves on every side, shouting so as to drive the animals beforethem. The herd collected together and for a short while stood at baywith the large bulls in front, and then set off through the foresttoward the river, followed by all the hunters on horse and on foot. In aquarter of an hour the whole herd had taken refuge in a large pool inthe river, which, with the reeds and rushes, and small islands in thecenter, occupied a long slip of ground.

  The Major, with Swanevelt and two other Hottentots, proceeded further upthe river, that they might cross it before the attack commenced, and theothers agreed to wait until the signal was given by the Major's firing.As soon as they heard the report of the Major's rifle, Swinton andAlexander, with their party, advanced to the banks of the river. Theyplunged in, and were soon up to the horses' girths, with the reeds farabove their heads. They could hear the animals forcing their way throughthe reeds, but could not see them; and after some severe labor, Swintonsaid--"Alexander, it will be prudent for us to go back; we can donothing here, and we shall stand a chance of being shot by our ownpeople, who can not see us. We must leave the dogs to drive them out, orthe Hottentots and Bushmen; but we must regain the banks."

  Just as Swinton said this, a loud rushing was heard through the reeds."Look out!" cried he; but he could say no more before the reeds openedand a large hippopotamus rushed upon them, throwing over Alexander'shorse on his side, and treading Alexander and his horse both deep underthe water as he passed over them and disappeared. Although the water wasnot more than four feet in depth, it was with difficulty that the horseand rider could extricate themselves from the reeds, among which theyhad been jammed and entangled; and Alexander's breath was quite gonewhen he at last emerged. Bremen and Swinton hastened to give whatassistance they could, and the horse was once more on his legs. "Myrifle," cried Alexander; "it is in the water." "We will find it," saidSwinton: "haste up to the banks as fast as you can, for you aredefenseless."

  Alexander thought it advisable to follow Swinton's advice, and with somedifficulty regained the bank, where he was soo
n afterward followed bySwinton and Bremen, who had secured his rifle. Alexander called Omrah,and sent him to the caravan for another rifle, and then for the firsttime he exclaimed, "Oh, what a brute! It was lucky the water was deep,or he would have jammed me on the head, so that I never should haverisen up again."

  "You have indeed had a providential escape, Alexander," replied Swinton;"is your horse hurt!"

  "He must be, I should think," said Alexander, "for the animal trod uponhim; but he does not appear to show it at present."

  In the mean time several shots were fired from the opposite side of theriver by the Major and his party, and occasionally the head or horns ofthe buffalo were seen above the reeds by the Hottentots, who remainedwith Swinton and Alexander: but the animals still adhered to theircover. Omrah having brought another rifle, Bremen then proposed that theHottentots, Bushmen, and dogs should force their way through the reedsand attempt to drive the animals out; in which there would be no danger,as the animals could not charge with any effect in the deep water andthick rushes.

  "Provided they don't meet with a hippopotamus," said Alexander,laughing.

  "Won't say a word about him, sir," replied Bremen, who then went andgave the directions.

  ALEXANDER AND THE HIPPOPOTAMUS.]

  The Hottentots and Bushmen, accompanied by the dogs, then went intothe reeds, and their shouting and barking soon drove out some of thebuffaloes on the opposite side, and the reports of the guns were heard.

  At last one came out on that side of the river where Alexander andSwinton were watching; Swinton fired, and the animal fell on its knees;a shot from Alexander brought it down dead and turned on its side. Oneof the Bushmen ran up to the carcass, and was about to use his knife,when another buffalo charged from the reeds, caught the Bushman on hishorns, and threw him many yards in the air. The Bushman fell among thereeds behind the buffalo, which in vain looked about for his enemy, whena shot from Bremen brought him to the ground.

  Shortly afterward the Bushman made his appearance from the reeds; he wasnot at all hurt, with the exception of a graze from the horns of theanimal, and a contusion of the ribs.

  The chase now became warm; the shouting of the Hottentots, the barkingof the dogs, and the bellowing of the herd, which were forcing their waythrough the reeds before them, were very exciting. By the advice ofSwinton, they took up their position on a higher ground, where thehorses had good footing, in case the buffaloes should charge.

  As soon as they arrived there, they beheld a scene on the other side ofthe river, about one hundred yards from them, which filled them withanxiety and terror; the Major's horse was galloping away, and the Majornot to be seen. Under a large tree, Swanevelt was in a sitting posture,holding his hands to his body as if severely wounded, his horse lying byhis side, and right before him an enormous bull buffalo, standingmotionless; the blood was streaming from the animal's nostrils, and itwas evidently tottering from weakness and loss of blood; at last itfell.

  "I fear there is mischief done," cried Swinton; "where can the Major be,and the two Hottentots who were with him! Swanevelt is hurt and hishorse killed, that is evident. We had better call them off, and let thebuffaloes remain quiet, or escape as they please."

  "There is the Major," said Alexander, "and the Hottentots too; they arenot hurt, don't you see them?--they were up the trees; thank God."

  They now observed the Major run up to Swanevelt, and presently the twoHottentots went in pursuit of the Major's horse. Shortly afterward,Swanevelt, with the assistance of the Major, got upon his legs, and,taking up his gun, walked slowly away.

  "No great harm done, after all," said Alexander; "God be praised: buthere come the whole herd, Swinton."

  "Let them go, my good fellow," replied Swinton, "we have had enough ofbuffalo-hunting for the present."

  The whole herd had now broken from the reeds about fifty paces fromwhere they were stationed, and with their tails raised, tossing withtheir horns, and bellowing with rage and fear, darted out of the reeds,dripping with slime and mud, and rushed off toward the forest. In a fewseconds they were out of sight.

  "A good riddance," said Swinton; "I hope the Major is now satisfied withbuffalo-hunting."

  "I am, at all events," replied Alexander. "I feel very sore and stiff.What a narrow escape that Bushman had."

  "Yes, he had indeed; but, Alexander, your horse is not well: he canhardly breathe. You had better dismount."

  Alexander did so, and unloosed his girths. Bremen got off his horse,and, offering it to Alexander, took the bridle of the other and examinedhim.

  "He has his ribs broken, sir," said the Hottentot,--"two of them, if notmore."

  "No wonder, poor fellow; lead him gently, Bremen. Oh, here comes theMajor. Now we shall know what has occurred; and there is Swanevelt andthe two men."

  "Well, Major, pray tell us your adventures, for you have frightened usdreadfully."

  "Not half so much as I have been frightened myself," replied the Major;"we have all had a narrow escape. I can assure you, and Swanevelt'shorse is dead."

  "Is Swanevelt hurt?"

  "No, he was most miraculously preserved; the horn of the buffalo hasgrazed the whole length of the body, and yet not injured him. But let usgo to the caravan and have something to drink, and then I will tell youall about it--I am quite done up, and my tongue cleaves to the roof ofmy mouth."

  As soon as they had arrived at the caravan and dismounted, the Majordrank some water, and then gave his narrative. "We had several shots onour side of the river, for the buffaloes had evidently an intention ofcrossing over, had we not turned them. We had killed two, when a bullbuffalo charged from the reeds upon Swanevelt, and before he could turnhis horse and put him to his speed, the horns of the buffalo had rippedup the poor animal, and he fell with Swanevelt under him. The enragedbrute disengaged himself from the horse, and made a second charge uponSwanevelt; but he twisted on one side, and the horn only grazed him, asI have mentioned. I then fired and wounded the animal. He chargedimmediately, and I turned my horse, but from fright he wheeled sosuddenly that I lost my stirrups, and my saddle turned round.

  "I found that I could not recover my seat, and that I was graduallysliding under the horse's belly, when he passed under a tree, and Icaught a branch and swung myself on to it, just as the buffalo, whichwas close behind us, came up to me. As he passed under, his back hit myleg; so you may imagine it was 'touch and go.' The animal, perceivingthat the horse left him, and I was not on it, quitted his pursuit, andcame back bellowing and roaring, and looking everywhere for me.

  "At last it perceived Swanevelt, who had disengaged himself from thedead horse, and was sitting under the tree, apparently much hurt, as heis, poor fellow, although not seriously. It immediately turned back tohim, and would certainly have gored him to death, had not Kloet, who wasup in a tree, fired at the animal and wounded him mortally--for hiscareer was stopped as he charged toward Swanevelt, and was not ten yardsfrom him. The animal could proceed no further, and there he stood untilhe fell dead."

  "We saw that portion of the adventure ourselves, Major," said Swinton;"and now we will tell you our own, which has been equally full ofincident and danger." Swinton having related what had passed on his sideof the river, the Major observed:

  "You may talk about lions, but I'd rather go to ten lion-hunts than onemore buffalo-hunt. I have had enough of buffaloes for all my life."

  "I am glad to hear you say so," replied Swinton, "for they are mostferocious and dangerous animals, as you may now acknowledge, and thedifficulty of giving them a mortal wound renders the attack of them veryhazardous. I have seen and heard enough of buffalo-hunting to tell youthat you have been fortunate, although you have lost one horse and haveanother very much hurt;--but here come the spoils of the chase; at allevents, we will benefit by the day's sport, and have a good meal."

  "I can't eat now," said Alexander; "I am very stiff. I shall go and liedown for an hour or two."

  "And so shall I," said the Major; "I have no appetite
."

  "Well, then, we will all meet at supper," said Swinton. "In the meantime I shall see if I can be of any use to Swanevelt. Where's Omrah?"

  "I saw him and Begum going out together just now," said the Major. "Whatfor, I do not know."

  "Oh! I told him to get some of the Bushman roots," said Alexander; "theyare as good as potatoes when boiled; and he has taken the monkey to findthem."

  The Major and Alexander remained on their beds till supper-time, whenMahomed woke them up. They found themselves much refreshed by theirsleep, and also found that their appetites had returned. Buffalo-steaksand fried Bushman roots were declared to be a very good substitute forbeefsteaks and fried potatoes; and after they had made a hearty meal,Alexander inquired of Swinton what he had seen of buffalo-hunting whenhe had been at the Cape before.

  "I have only been once or twice engaged in a buffalo-hunt; but I cantell you what I have heard, and what I have collected from my ownknowledge, as to the nature of the animal, of which indeed to-day youhave had a very good proof. I told you this morning, that a singlebuffalo was more dangerous than a herd; and the reason is this:--At thebreeding season, the fiercest bulls drive the others away from the herd,in the same manner as the elephants do; and these solitary buffaloes areextremely dangerous, as they do not wait to be attacked, but will attacka man without any provocation. They generally conceal themselves, andrush out upon you unawares, which makes it more difficult to escape fromthem. They are so bold, that they do not fear the lion himself; and Ihave been told by the Dutch boors, that when a buffalo has killed one oftheir comrades by goring and tossing him, it will not leave its victimfor hours, but continue to trample on him with his hoofs, crushing thebody with its knees as an elephant does, and with its rough tonguestripping off the skin as far as it can. It does not do all this at onetime, but it leaves the body, and returns again, as if to glut itsvengeance."

  "What a malicious brute!"

  "Such is certainly its character. I recollect a history of abuffalo-hunting adventure, told me by a Dutch farmer, who was himself aneye-witness to the scene. He had gone out with a party to hunt a herd ofbuffaloes which were grazing on a piece of marshy ground, sprinkled witha few mimosa-trees. As they could not get within shot of the herd,without crossing a portion of the marsh, which was not safe for horses,they agreed to leave their steeds in charge of two Hottentots, and toadvance on foot; thinking that, in case any of the buffaloes shouldcharge them, it would be easy to escape by running back to the marsh,which would bear the weight of a man, but not of a horse, much less thatof a buffalo.

  "They advanced accordingly over the marsh, and being concealed by somebushes, they had the good fortune to bring down, with the first volley,three of the fattest of the herd; and also so severely wounded the greatbull, which was the leader of the herd, that he dropped down on hisknees, bellowing most furiously. Thinking that the animal was mortallywounded, the foremost of the huntsmen walked out in front of the bushesfrom which they had fired, and began to reload his musket as headvanced, in order to give the animal a finishing shot. But no soonerdid the enraged animal see the man advancing, than he sprang up andcharged headlong at him. The man threw down his gun, and ran toward themarsh; but the beast was so close upon him, that he despaired ofescaping by that direction, and turning suddenly round a clump ofcopsewood, began to climb an old mimosa tree which stood close to it.

  "The buffalo was, however, too quick for him. Bounding forward with aroar, which the farmer told me was one of the most hideous and appallingsounds that he ever heard, he caught the poor fellow with his terriblehorns, just as he had nearly got out of reach, and tossed him in the airwith such force, that after whirling round and round to a great height,the body fell into the fork of the branches of the tree. The buffalowent round the tree roaring, and looking for the man, until, exhaustedby wounds and loss of blood, it again fell down on its knees. The otherhunters then attacked and killed him; but they found their comrade, whowas still hanging in the tree, quite dead."

  "Well; I have no doubt but that such would have been the fate ofSwanevelt or of me, had the brute got hold of us," said the Major; "Inever saw such a malignant, diabolical expression in any animal'scountenance as there was upon that buffalo's. A lion is, I should say, agentleman and a man of honor compared to such an evil-disposed ruffian."

  "Well, Major, you have only to let them alone; recollect, you were theaggressor," said Swinton, laughing.

  "Very true; I never wish to see one again."

  "And I never wish to be in the way of a hippopotamus again, I can assureyou," said Alexander, "for a greater want of politeness I never metwith."

  During this conversation the Hottentots and Bushmen at the other fireshad not been idle. The Hottentots had fried and eaten, and fried andeaten, till they could hold no more; and the Bushmen, who in the morninglooked as thin and meager as if they had not had a meal for a month,were now so stuffed that they could hardly walk, and their leanstomachs were distended as round as balls. The Bushman who had beentossed by the buffalo came up and asked for a little tobacco, at thesame time smiling and patting his stomach, which was distended to a mostextraordinary size.

  "Yes, let us give them some," said Alexander; "it will complete theirday's happiness. Did you ever see a fellow so stuffed? I wonder he doesnot burst."

  "It is their custom. They starve for days, and then gorge in this waywhen an opportunity offers, which is but seldom. Their calendar, such asit is, is mainly from recollections of feasting; and I will answer forit, that if one Bushman were on some future day to ask another when sucha thing took place, he would reply, just before or just after the whitemen killed the buffaloes."

  "How do they live in general?"

  "They live upon roots at certain seasons of the year; upon locusts whena flight takes place; upon lizards, beetles--any thing. Occasionallythey procure game, but not very often. They are obliged to lie in waitfor it, and wound it with their poisoned arrows, and then they followits track and look for it the next day. Subtle as the poison is theyonly cut out the part near the wound, and eat the rest of the animal.They dig pit-holes for the hippopotamus and rhinoceros and occasionallytake them. They poison the pools for the game also; but their living isvery precarious, and they often suffer the extremities of hunger."

  "Is that the cause, do you imagine, of their being so diminutive a race,Swinton?"

  "No doubt of it. Continual privation and hardships from generation togeneration have, I have no doubt, dwindled them down to what you see."

  "How is it that these Bushmen are so familiar? I thought that they weresavage and irreclaimable."

  "They are what are termed tame Bushmen; that is, they have lived nearthe farmers, and have, by degrees, become less afraid of the Europeans.Treated kindly, they have done good in return to the farmers by watchingtheir sheep, and performing other little services, and have beenrewarded with tobacco. This has given them confidence to a certaindegree. But we must expect to meet with others that are equally wild,and who will be very mischievous; attempting to drive off our cattle,and watching in ambush all round our caravan, ready for any pilferingthat they can successfully accomplish; and then we shall discover thatwe are in their haunts without even seeing them."

  "How so?"

  "Because it will only be by their thefts that we shall find it out. Butit is time for bed, and as to-morrow is Sunday you will have a day ofrest, which I think you both require."

  "I do," replied Alexander, "so good-night to you both."