mained on their beds till supper-time, when
Mahomed woke them up. They found themselves much refreshed by their
sleep, and also found that their appetites had returned. Buffalo-steaks
and fried Bushman-roots were declared to be a very good substitute for
beef-steaks and fried potatoes; and after they had made a hearty meal,
Alexander inquired of Swinton what he had seen of buffalo-hunting when
he had been at the Cape before.

"I have only been once or twice engaged in a buffalo-hunt; but I can
tell you what I have heard, and what I have collected from my own
knowledge, as to the nature of the animal, of which indeed to-day you
have all a very good proof. I told you this morning, that a single
buffalo was more dangerous than a herd; and the reason is this:--At the
breeding season, the fiercest bulls drive the others away from the herd,
in the same manner as the elephants do; and these solitary buffaloes are
extremely dangerous, as they do not wait to be attacked, but will attack
a man without any provocation. They generally conceal themselves, and
rush out upon you unawares, which makes it more difficult to escape from
them. They are so bold, that they do not fear the lion himself; and I
have been told by the Dutch boors, that when a buffalo has killed one of
their comrades by goring and tossing him, it will not leave its victim
for hours, but continue to trample on him with its hoofs, crushing the
body with its knees as an elephant does, and with its rough tongue
stripping off the skin as far as it can. It does not do all this at one
time, but it leaves the body, and returns again, as if to glut its
vengeance."

"What a malicious brute!"

"Such is certainly its character. I recollect a history of a
buffalo-hunting adventure, told me by a Dutch farmer, who was himself an
eye-witness to the scene. He had gone out with a party to hunt a herd
of buffaloes which were grazing on a piece of marshy ground, sprinkled
with a 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 to
advance on foot; thinking that, in case any of the buffaloes should
charge 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 that
of a buffalo.

"They advanced accordingly over the marsh, and being concealed by so