If it had gone twenty yards to its left, it could easily have passed the obstacle; but it was pig-like enough in its nature to keep on trying to force itself through the obstacle it had tried to pass, and seeing this, Dinny went on, gaining a little courage the while.
“Shure I’ll go close enough to make quite sartain,” he muttered; “but it’s like having a bad dhrame, that it is. Now where had I better shute him—in the mouth or the eye?”
He decided for the eye, and raising the rifle at last he took a long aim at not six feet distance, when the great beast uttered so furious a roar that Dinny turned once more, and fled behind the tree.
“Shure and what’d I be freckened of?” he said angrily. “Not of a baste like that.” And walking out once more he repeated his manoeuvres, approaching cautiously; and as the rhinoceros began straining, and sprang to force its way through, Dinny took careful aim at the monstrous beast, and fired.
“Shure it’s aisy enough,” he said, as the beast started back; and placing a fresh cartridge in his piece, he fired again at where the animal stood in the full moonlight swaying its head to and fro.
It was impossible to miss; and Dinny fired again and again, nine shots in all, growing encouraged by his success; and the result was that the monster fell over upon its side at last with a heavy thud, just as Chicory dropped to the ground, and made the hero jump by touching him on the back.
“Ah, be aisy; what are ye thrying to frecken a man for like that?” said Dinny. “But look at that, ye little haythen; that’s the way to shute. Now let’s go back and tell them they needn’t be alarmed about the big pig, for its Dinny himself that has done the thrick.”