hinking that if any of the buffaloes should turn upon
them, it would be easy to escape by retreating across the quagmire,
which, though passable for man, would not support the weight of a heavy
quadruped. They advanced accordingly, and, under covert of the bushes,
approached the game with such advantage, that the first volley brought
down three of the fattest of the herd, and so severely wounded the great
bull leader, that he dropped on his knees, bellowing furiously. Thinking
him mortally wounded, the foremost of the huntsmen issued from the
covert, and began reloading his musket as he advanced, to give him a
finishing shot. But no sooner did the infuriated animal see his foe in
front of him, than he sprang up and rushed headlong upon him. The man,
throwing down his heavy gun, fled towards the quagmire, but the beast
was so close upon him, that he despaired of escaping in that direction,
and turning suddenly round a clump of copse-wood, began to climb an old
mimosa tree which stood at one side of it. The raging beast, however,
was too quick for him. Bounding forward with a roar, which my informant
described as being one of the most frightful sounds he ever heard, he
caught the unfortunate man with his terrible horns, just as he had
nearly escaped his reach, and tossed him into the air with such force,
that the body fell dreadfully mangled into a cleft of the tree. The
buffalo ran round the tree once or twice, apparently looking for the
man, until weakened with loss of blood, he again sank on his knees. The
rest of the party, recovering from their confusion, then came up and
despatched him, though too late to save their comrade, whose body was
hanging in the tree quite dead."

The Aurochs is the European Bison, and is one of the largest and noblest
of the genus. He stands six feet high at the shoulders, has two sorts of
hair, one short, soft, and woolly, and the other long, rough, and
covering the upper part and sides of the head; the chest, neck and
shoulders, forming an enormous mane, sometimes a foot long. The tongue,
lips and palate have a bluish tint, the eyes are small, and piercing; an
odour resembling both musk and violets exudes from the skin, especially
that part which covers the convex forehead, and which may be smelt at a
distance of a hundred yards. Their flesh is much esteemed, they live in
thickets near swamps, come out at night to eat the bark of young trees,
lichens, and young shoots, carry their head lo