mother lies, and into them are inserted four poles of
great strength, so arranged that they stand at the angles of a square or
parallelogram, sustaining a framework surmounted by planks sufficiently
strong to support four men in case of need, though sometimes two only
are required. The men, who are very skilful, are stationed one on each
side of the plank, armed with a large strong net, made of a soft and
agreeable material, which, as soon as the young one is born, they let
down very gradually, so as to disturb the mother as little as possible.
Should she be annoyed at the appearance of the net, they hold their
hands, keeping it suspended, and as soon as she is appeased and closes
her eyes, let it down again, still very slowly, almost imperceptibly,
until it has reached the ground, close to where the young one is lying,
so contriving that when the little creature moves it will be upon the
net.

As soon as the young one is fairly on the net, the men apply several
long canes furnished with grappling-hooks, and draw up the net
containing the young one. While doing this, they throw over the mother a
material which impedes her movement, and which we call by a name that
may be freely translated, "Clinging Flannel." The animal thus encumbered
cannot disentangle herself for a few minutes, more than sufficient to
secure the capture of the little one, which, as soon as it has been
raised is let down into a vehicle ready to receive it. The instant this
is done, the driver and all being in readiness, the horses start off at
full gallop, and the calf is secured in a place far out of hearing of
the mother.

We can almost invariably tell whether the mother is likely to destroy
the young one; and if from this or other causes a separation is
necessary, a similar course is pursued, even when the mother is at
large. If we had not effective means of driving off the rest of the
herd, the difficulty of the operation of removal would be greatly
increased, for, strange to say, as soon as the calf is born numbers of
hippopotami assemble at certain distances and form a wide circle round
the spot where the mother and little one are lying. They do not
interfere with or annoy them in any way, but, on the contrary, they
stand still, look at them, and utter wild, joyous sounds, as though they
were pleased with the mother and the little visitor. In Montalluyah we
call this "the hippopotamus's visit of congratulation."

Before I describe the mode a