as caused by fear soon became apparent, for the tones of
terror either in man or beast, when distinctly heard, cannot be
mistaken.

Immediately in front of the spot where we stood was an open space or
glade of considerable extent. Towards this the animal approached, as
was evident from the increasing loudness of its wild roar, which was
almost continuous. In another moment the thick wall of underwood at its
farther extremity was burst asunder with a crash, and a wild buffalo
bull bounded into the plain and dashed madly across. On its neck was
crouched a leopard, which had fixed its claws and teeth deep in the
flesh of the agonised animal. In vain did the bull bound and rear, toss
and plunge. At one moment it ran like the wind; the next it stopped
with such violence as to tear up the turf and scatter it around. Then
it reared, almost falling back; anon it plunged and rushed on again,
with the foam flying from its mouth, and its bloodshot eyes glaring with
the fire of rage and terror, while the woods seemed to tremble with its
loud and deep-toned bellowing. Twice in its passage across the open
glade it ran, in its blind fury, straight against a tree, almost beating
in its skull, and for a moment arresting its progress; but it instantly
recovered the shock and burst away again as madly as ever. But no
effort that it was capable of making could relieve the poor creature
from its deadly burden, or cause the leopard in the slightest degree to
relax its fatal gripe.

It chanced that the wild bull's mad gallop was in a direction that
brought it within a few yards of the spot where we stood, so we prepared
to put an end to its misery. As it drew near, Jack, who was in advance,
raised his rifle. I, being only a short distance from him, also made
ready to fire, although I confess that in the agitation of the moment I
could not make up my mind whether I should fire at the buffalo or the
leopard. As far as I can recall my rapid and disjointed thoughts on
that exciting occasion, I reasoned thus: "If I shoot the leopard the
bull will escape, and if I shoot the bull the leopard will escape." It
did not occur to me at that trying moment, when self-possession and
decision were so necessary, that I might shoot the bull with one barrel,
and the leopard with the other. Still less did it occur to me that I
might miss bull and leopard altogether.

While I was engaged in this hurried train of troubled thought, Jack
fired both b