out fifty yards from the spot for which we were making, was
the only tree on the island, and under it with his back to us, and
leisurely eating the leaves of the lower branches, exactly as though
he were waiting for us by appointment, was a big gray hippo. His
back being toward us, we could not aim at his head, and he could not
see us. But the _Deliverance_ is not noiseless, and, hearing the
paddle-wheel, the hippo turned, saw us, and bolted for the river.
The hippopotamus is as much at home in the water as the seal. To get
to the water, if he is surprised out of it, and to get under it, if
he is alarmed while in it, is instinct. If he does venture ashore,
he goes only a few rods from the bank and then only to forage. His
home is the river, and he rushes to bury himself in it as naturally
as the squirrel makes for a tree. This particular hippo ran for the
river as fast as a horse coming at a slow trot. He was a very badly
scared hippo. His head was high in the air, his fat sides were
shaking, and the one little eye turned toward us was filled with
concern. Behind him the yellow sun was setting into the lagoons. On
the flat stretch of sand he was the only object, and against the
horizon loomed as large as a freight car. That must be why we both
missed him. I tried to explain that the reason I missed him was
that, never before having seen so large an animal running for his
life, I could not watch him do it and look at the gun sights. No one
believed that was why I missed him. I did not believe it myself. In
any event neither of us hit his head, and he plunged down the bank
to freedom, carrying most of the bank with him. But, while we still
were violently blaming each other, at about two hundred yards below
the boat, he again waddled out of the river and waded knee deep up
the little stream. Keeping the bunches of grass between us, I ran up
the beach, aimed at his eye and this time hit him fairly enough.
With a snort he rose high in the air, and so, for an instant,
balanced his enormous bulk. The action was like that of a horse
that rears on his hind legs, when he is whipped over the nose. And
apparently my bullet hurt him no more than the whip the horse, for
he dropped heavily to all fours, and again disappeared into the
muddy river. Our disappointment and chagrin were intense, and at
once Anfossi and I organized a hunt for that evening. To encourage
us, while we were sitting on the bridge making a hasty dinner,
another h