Maiwas Revenge | Page 9

but was
obliged to abandon the idea because the noise was too loud. I shifted
myself round and stared through the cracks in the bush, in the direction
whence the sound seemed to come, and once I thought that I saw
something gray moving about fifty yards off, but could not make
certain. Although the grinding noise still continued I could see nothing
more, so I gave up thinking about it, and once again turned my
attention to the buffalo. Presently, however, something happened.
Suddenly from about forty yards away there came a tremendous
snorting sound, more like that made by an engine getting a heavy train
under weigh than anything else in the world.

"'By Jove,' I thought, turning round in the direction from which the
grinding sound had come, 'that must be a rhinoceros, and he has got our
wind.' For, as you fellows know, there is no mistaking the sound made
by a rhinoceros when he gets wind of you.
"Another second, and I heard a most tremendous crashing noise. Before
I could think what to do, before I could even get up, the bush behind
me seemed to burst asunder, and there appeared not eight yards from us,
the great horn and wicked twinkling eye of a charging rhinoceros. He
had winded us or my pipe, I do not know which, and, after the fashion
of these brutes, had charged up the scent. I could not rise, I could not
even get the gun up, I had no time. All that I was able to do was to roll
over as far out of the monster's path as the bush would allow. Another
second and he was over me, his great bulk towering above me like a
mountain, and, upon my word, I could not get his smell out of my
nostrils for a week. Circumstances impressed it on my memory, at least
I suppose so. His hot breath blew upon my face, one of his front feet
just missed my head, and his hind one actually trod upon the loose part
of my trousers and pinched a little bit of my skin. I saw him pass over
me lying as I was upon my back, and next second I saw something else.
My men were a little behind me, and therefore straight in the path of
the rhinoceros. One of them flung himself backwards into the bush, and
thus avoided him. The second with a wild yell sprung to his feet, and
bounded like an india-rubber ball right into the aloe bush, landing well
among the spikes. But the third, it was my friend Gobo, could not by
any means get away. He managed to gain his feet, and that was all. The
rhinoceros was charging with his head low; his horn passed between
Gobo's legs, and feeling something on his nose, he jerked it up. Away
went Gobo, high into the air. He turned a complete somersault at the
apex of the curve, and as he did so, I caught sight of his face. It was
gray with terror, and his mouth was wide open. Down he came, right on
to the great brute's back, and that broke his fall. Luckily for him the
rhinoceros never turned, but crashed straight through the aloe bush,
only missing the man who had jumped into it by about a yard.
"Then followed a complication. The sleeping buffalo on the further side
of the bush, hearing the noise, sprang to his feet, and for a second, not

knowing what to do, stood still. At that instant the huge rhinoceros
blundered right on to him, and getting his horn beneath his stomach
gave him such a fearful dig that the buffalo was turned over on to his
back, while his assailant went a most amazing cropper over his carcase.
In another moment, however, the rhinoceros was up, and wheeling
round to the left, crashed through the bush down-hill and towards the
open country.
"Instantly the whole place became alive with alarming sounds. In every
direction troops of snorting buffaloes charged through the forest, wild
with fright, while the injured bull on the further side of the bush began
to bellow like a mad thing. I lay quite still for a moment, devoutly
praying that none of the flying buffaloes would come my way. Then
when the danger lessened I got on to my feet, shook myself, and looked
round. One of my boys, he who had thrown himself backward into the
bush, was already half way up a tree--if heaven had been at the top of it
he could not have climbed quicker. Gobo was lying close to me,
groaning vigorously, but, as I suspected, quite unhurt; while from the
aloe bush into which No. 3 had bounded like a tennis