preferred to elephant-beef. Hendrik had
procured the venison by a shot from his rifle, and in the following
manner. About midday he went out--having fancied that upon a large
grassy meadow near the camp he saw some animal. After walking about
half a mile, and keeping among bushes, around the edge of the meadow, he
got near enough to be sure that it _was_ an animal he had observed, for
he now saw _two_ in the place he had marked.

They were of a kind he had not met with before. They were very small
creatures,--smaller even than springboks,--but, from their general form
and appearance, Hendrik knew they were either antelopes or deer; and, as
Hans had told him there were _no deer in Southern Africa_, he concluded
they must be some species of antelope. They were a buck and doe,--this
he knew because one of them only carried horns. The buck was _under two
feet_ in height, of slender make, and pale tawny colour. He was
white-bellied, with white arches above the eyes, and some long white
hair under the throat. Below his knees were yellowish tufts of long
hair, and his horns--instead of being lyrate, like those of the
springbok--rose nearly vertical to the height of four inches. They were
black in colour, round-shaped, and slightly ringed. The doe was without
horns, and was a much smaller animal than her mate.

From all these marks Hendrik thought the little antelopes were
"ourebis;" and such they were.

He continued to stalk in upon them, until he was as close as he could
get. But he was still more than two hundred yards from them, and of
course far from being within shooting distance with his small rifle.

A thick _jong dora_ bush concealed him, but he dared not go farther else
the game would have taken the alarm. He could perceive that they were
shy creatures.

Every now and gain the buck would raise his graceful neck to its full
stretch, utter a slight blearing call, and look suspiciously around him.
From these symptoms Hendrik drew the inference that it was shy game,
and would not be easily approached.

He lay for a moment, thinking what he should do. He was to leeward of
the game, as he had purposely gone there; but after a while, to his
chagrin, he saw that they were _feeding up the wind_, and of course
widening the distance between them and himself.

It occurred to Hendrik that it might be their habit to browse up the
wind, as springboks and some other species do. If so, he might as well
give it u