side or the other of you, and
go snorting away into the distance. Keep your eye on him very closely.
If he swerves definitely in your direction, AND DROPS HIS HEAD A LITTLE
LOWER, it would be just as well to open fire. Provided the beast was
still far enough away to give me "sea-room," I used to put a small
bullet in the flesh of the outer part of the shoulder. The wound thus
inflicted was not at all serious, but the shock of the bullet usually
turned the beast. This was generally in the direction of the wounded
shoulder, which would indicate that the brute turned toward the apparent
source of the attack, probably for the purpose of getting even. At
any rate, the shot turned the rush to one side, and the rhinoceros, as
usual, went right on through. If, however, he seemed to mean business,
or was too close for comfort, the point to aim for was the neck just
above the lowered horn.

In my own experience I came to establish a "dead line" about twenty
yards from myself. That seemed to be as near as I cared to let the
brutes come. Up to that point I let them alone on the chance that they
might swerve or change their minds, as they often did. But inside of
twenty yards, whether the rhinoceros meant to charge me, or was merely
running blindly by, did not particularly matter. Even in the latter case
he might happen to catch sight of me and change his mind. Thus,
looking over my notebook records, I find that I was "charged" forty odd
times-that is to say, the rhinoceros rushed in my general direction. Of
this lot I can be sure of but three, and possibly four, that certainly
meant mischief. Six more came so directly at us, and continued so to
come, that in spite of ourselves we were compelled to kill them. The
rest were successfully dodged.

As I have heard old hunters of many times my experience, affirm that
only in a few instances have they themselves been charged indubitably
and with malice aforethought, it might be well to detail my reasons for
believing myself definitely and not blindly attacked.

The first instance was that when B. killed his second trophy rhinoceros.
The beast's companion refused to leave the dead body for a long time,
but finally withdrew. On our approaching, however, and after we had
been some moments occupied with the trophy, it returned and charged
viciously. It was finally killed at fifteen yards.

The second instance was of a rhinoceros that got up from the grass
sixty yards away, and came headlo