"Then I will tell you about it," was the reply. "It was in the mountains, some distance in the interior, where the country is very thinly settled, and the animals are entirely wild. The mode of hunting is to station yourself on the edge of a wood which is known to contain buffaloes; you must have a gun on which you can depend, and, above all, you must have full possession of your nerves. When all is ready, you send two or three Indians with dogs into the woods, to beat up the game and rouse him to the proper condition of anger. This is what I did, and I stood for at least half an hour without hearing a sound.
"The Indians remove nearly all their clothing, so that they can climb trees and get out of the way of the infuriated buffalo whenever he charges at them, and only the most active of the young Indians are selected for this work. By-and-by I heard the barking of the dogs; it kept coming nearer and nearer, and in a little while one of the Indians showed himself at the edge of the forest and sprung into the limbs of the nearest tree. I brought my rifle to my shoulder, and stood ready to receive the assailant. As he came out of the forest, he stopped a moment, as if bewildered at not seeing the Indian; when he looked around his eyes rested on me, and then he came onward, crashing through the small bushes, and trampling down everything that stood in his way.
"He made straight for me, as if intending to run me down, and did not pause till he was not ten paces away. Then he halted for a few seconds, and lowered his head to rush upon me with his horns.
"This is the critical moment when the hunter should deliver his fire, and he must aim directly at the centre of the animal's forehead. If the gun misses fire, or he fails of his aim, he is lost.
SHOOTING A BUFFALO.
"I fired just at the right time, and the bullet went straight to its mark. The buffalo made his plunge as he had intended, but instead of piercing me with his horns, he fell dead at my feet. The Indians then came up and praised my coolness, and predicted that I would become a famous hunter. I have shot a good many buffaloes since then, but it is fair to say I always have some one near me to deliver a shot in case my rifle should fail, and I stand close to a tree, and am prepared to jump behind it if possible. This is a precaution that every one should take, as you can never be certain that your gun will not miss fire, or your shot may fail to pierce the thick skull of the buffalo."
Frank asked how much the buffalo of the Philippines was like that of the United States.