With all his might, Boly cracked his whip and shouted vigorously, and succeeded in making the oxen drag the waggon with unexpected speed; they were all flecked with foam as they pulled their oscillating load behind them; every moment it seemed as if it must overbalance. At the bottom of the hollow it was absolutely necessary to take a rest; the beasts must have time to recover from their exertions; they were all more or less torn by the bushes, and my friends, too, were much scratched about the hands and face. The heat was becoming intense. My horse was not naturally a nervous animal, but it trembled till it could hardly stand, and the hardest part of our struggle had yet to come.
A flake of fire fell within fifteen yards of us, and warned us that it was time to be on the move. “Hulloh an! Hulloh an!” roared the driver, and the bullocks once again strained themselves to their work. Scarcely, however, had they gone ten paces, when the smoke puffed against their eyes, and all bewildered, they swerved into a track where the waggon must inevitably have been overturned; it was a critical moment, but happily one of my party, who was walking at my side, saw the danger, and, rushing at the heads of the leaders, turned them by a desperate effort into the right direction. The instinct of self-preservation now redoubled every one’s efforts; onwards we pushed, through clouds of smoke, amidst falling ashes, amongst fragments of red-hot bark, till we were within fifty yards of the place of safety. So heated was the atmosphere, that I momentarily expected to see the canvas of the waggon break out into a blaze.
The bullocks once more gasped and tottered beneath their yoke; with painful toil they made their way for another thirty yards; it was doubtful whether they could accomplish the remaining twenty.
One more moment of rest, followed by one more frantic paroxysm of exertion, and all was safe! Just in time we reached the hill that overlooked a hollow, beyond which was the expanse of black burnt grass. I ungirthed my horse, my people all flung themselves exhausted on the ground; their faces were crimson with heat; their limbs were bruised by their frequent falls; their eyes seemed starting from their sockets. Poor Pit, who had scrambled along with the front oxen, had his shirt torn from his back, and his chest was smeared with blood from many a wound, but fortunately none that was very deep.
The fatigue and excitement that we had undergone demanded some repose, but the miseries of the thirst we were enduring did not permit us to wait long. As soon as possible we started off again; we had no difficulty in finding the proper tracks; and fortunately for our worn-out team, which had to pause about every hundred yards, the ground was quite level. Evening began to draw on; to alleviate our sufferings we were obliged to moisten our burning lips with vinegar; we were too depressed to speak, and kept a moody silence. Once Pit broke the stillness by calling out to us to look to the right; we raised our eyes just to notice that three hartebeests were almost in the road before us; but so excessive was our languor that no one seemed to care that they were there.
While I was in Africa three kinds of hartebeest antelopes came under my observation. The common hartebeest, found throughout South Africa, as far as the Zambesi, but most frequently in the bushy parts of the southern and central districts; the sesephi, or Zulu hartebeest, which is found in the same districts, but north of the Zambesi as well; and a third species, which appears closely allied to the common hartebeest.
I shall have occasion hereafter to refer to the sesephi, which in various respects resembles the buntbock; but I may here say a few words about the hartebeest proper.
HARTEBEEST.
From the effect of its elongated head and angular horns, the common hartebeest may perhaps be pronounced the ugliest of all the antelopes. I myself found it most frequently between the Vaal and the Soa Salt Lake, though I was told that it is quite common in the east and north-east of the Transvaal, and in the northern parts of Cape Colony. Being less timid than other kinds, it is more exposed to destruction; it lives in small herds, often inhabiting the same districts as the striped gnu. The probable reason of its comparative rarity in the more northern regions of Central South Africa is that the Bamangwatos are especially partial to its skin for their dresses, and it has consequently been much sought for, till its numbers have diminished.