mal life, the perfect
working and machinery of which are more than wonderful.

The annoyance to which an individual must submit during a voyage over
nine thousand miles of ocean is well repaid by a scene of this kind,
that scarcely needs its accompaniments of many animated specimens of
nature, in the shape of birds, bucks, and monkeys, to enliven it.
Still, however, there are some human natures so dead to the purely
beautiful, and so entirely fettered to the things less pure, that all
the beauty I have so feebly described is passed over unadmired and
almost unnoticed; and the same round and routine is carried on in the
leisure hours of such men as though they were in Portsmouth, Plymouth,
or some other well-peopled town.

"How do you pass your time?" I asked of an intellectual looking
gentleman with whom I dined soon after landing.

"Oh, I backy a good deal, and bathe sometimes, but it is too hot to do
much," was his answer.

"Do you sketch?"

"Well, I'm no hand at that."

"Is there no game about? I have heard that bucks were numerous and
elephants very near."

"Well, if you bother about them, I dare say you may see lots; but it's
too much trouble for me, and I am no shot."

Poor miserable man! he took no interest in anything; he had no pleasure
in viewing the most wonderful and beautiful works of nature, and had no
gratification in placing on paper even a poor representation of the
scenes before his eyes, for the future amusement of friends less
favoured by locality. No! there was trouble or bother in it; there was
neither, he thought, in smoking tobacco, and drinking brandy-and-water:
the first habit, however, has ruined his health, the latter his
prospects and character.

I know many men who through their devotion to field-sports have avoided
many of those evils which others, through nothing but a life of
idleness, have incurred.

I was soon fortunate enough to purchase a very useful second pony, which
was an accomplished animal in every way: he would stop immediately when
I dropped the reins, or crossed the gun over the saddle, or rested my
hand on his neck, or even if a buck sprung up in front of him. He would
stand fire like a rock, and would not shake his head or start on any
account, nor did he care for elephants or anything else. He was a most
useful auxiliary, and from his back I shot elands, hartebeest, reitbok,
ourebis, steinbok, duikers, etc. He would allow small bucks to be put
up behin