ked with little tiny beads of blood all over its satin skin.

CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT.

FATHER SHOOTS A GIRAFFE.

Meanwhile, believing that the boys were in full chase of a giraffe
a-piece, Mr Rogers had galloped on after the great creature he had cut
off from the herd, though for a time he could not gain upon it at all.
The beast's mode of progression was very ungainly, and its great stilted
legs moved in an awkward manner, but it got over the ground very fast.

Still the plain was open and offered good galloping ground, and after a
very long stern-chase Mr Rogers saw tokens of the great beast beginning
to give way, and thereupon pushed forward, the bay responding to the
calls he made upon it, so that he was soon alongside.

His rifle was ready, but he hesitated to use it, preferring to gallop on
and watch the great creature which towered up to double the height he
sat upon his horse. It kept panting on, whisking its tail, and once or
twice it made an awkward side-wise kick at the horse, but it was
ill-directed and of none effect; while at last feeling that he was
torturing the great beast, he levelled his gun, but his sight was
disarranged by another fierce kick, which made the horse bound aside.

Again they thundered on for some distance, when, steadying his horse so
as to get a good aim, Mr Rogers levelled, fired, and the monster came
down with a crash, shot through the head.

As the great giraffe lay motionless, Mr Rogers leaped down, after
looking to see if his boys were coming; and then loosening his horse's
girths he let it graze amongst the rich grass that grew in patches here
and there, while, after refreshing himself a little, he drew his
hunting-knife and proceeded dexterously to skin the great animal, which
must have stood about nineteen feet from horn to hoof.

For the skin of the giraffe--if a fine one--is worth three or four
pounds, and this was in magnificent condition.

It was a hard task that skinning, but the long legs acted as levers when
he wanted to turn the creature over, and the busily employed time
skipped away, quite three hours having elapsed before Dick and Jack rode
up.

"Why, what a magnificent skin, father," cried Dick, as he stood admiring
the creamy drab, splashed and spotted with great patches of a rich
yellowish brown. "What a monster, and what a height!"

"Yes," said Mr Rogers. "But I've had enough of this, boys. The great
gentle beast looked so piteous and appealing