CHAPTER THIRTY NINE.
HOW DICK CAPTURED FOUR YARDS OF ANIMAL.
Mr Rogers' description of the death of the gentle, harmless beast--itspiteous looks, the great tears rolling from its expressive eyes, and itsmany struggles to get away, somewhat damped the ardour of Dick and Jack,who settled in council that it was too bad to shoot giraffe, and as theyhad a skin of the great creature, which was stretched out to dry, theywould shoot no more.
As for that magnificent skin, Rough'un seemed to consider that it wasplaced there for his especial benefit; and to the great disgust ofPompey, Caesar, and Crassus, who were tied up and could not join, buthad to be content at straining at their chains and looking-on, Rough'unamused himself by licking the skin, especially where there were littlebits of fat, till he was tired, and then creeping under the hairy sideto sleep.
This he kept up for a whole day. The second day he gave it up, for theskin was rapidly assuming the character of a hard board; but thetriumvirate were as impatient as ever, and barked incessantly.
This annoyed Dinny, who borrowed Peter's great whip to administerpunishment; but at the first crack and howl, Rough'un, who was loyaltyitself to his kind, left the hard skin that he had been smelling andscratching with his forepaw, and flew at Dinny, exclaiming in doglanguage,--
"Let them alone, you coward; you wouldn't dare to hurt them if they werefree."
"Ah, get out, ye ugly murthering baste," roared Dinny, cracking thewhip, but in no way intimidating Rough'un, who seemed to know that hewas perfectly safe, the whip being only available for use at longdistances, and Rough'un keeping close to, and baying and charging atDinny's legs.
"Be off, or I'll be the death of you," said Dinny, cracking the whipagain; but in nowise dismayed, Rough'un kept up the attack, till Dinnyliterally turned, and fled to obtain his rifle; when Rough'un gave afinal bark, and growled at the triumvirate, and the triumvirate were somuch obliged that they growled at Rough'un, who coiled himself up in thesun on the malodorous skin and went to sleep.
Dick and Jack were busy saddling their horses while this took place, andstood laughing and enjoying the scene. They were joined directly afterby their father, who with the help of Dick had been doing a littleamateur farriery work, and freshly nailing a couple of loose shoes onhis horse's hoofs. Then, after providing themselves with some driedmeat and biscuit, they rode off through the forest on to the plain,leaving the General, Coffee, and Chicory, to provide something for thelarder.
This was to be their last day here, for Mr Rogers was anxious that theyshould get on, for the twofold object of seeing the great falls of thebig river, and also getting amongst the elephant.
He could not help smiling with satisfaction, as he saw Dick raise onefoot to the stirrup, and spring into the saddle; the boy seeming to havegrown lithe and strong as the young leopard with his healthy life in theopen air.
There was no need to coax his appetite now with luxuries, for his fatherused to banter him laughingly about its wolfishness, and compare hisfood-assimilating powers to those of Coffee and Chicory--boys who couldliterally graze upon meat by the hour together, and then grin, and showtheir teeth with satisfaction.
With his returning health, Dick had grown daring to a degree that wasalmost rash, so that Jack felt at times quite thrown into the shade.
Dick winced a little upon this occasion, for the tremendous scratchinghe had had from the thorns had left him rather sore; but he soon forgotall this, and away the party rode, to have a sort of naturalists'equestrian ramble, to see if they could pick up anything fresh beforethey went away.
They rode right off to the plain, noting the various birds among thebushes, and snakes and lizards wherever there was a dry sandy patchamongst rocks and stones. As they reached the part where the trees werescattered in park-like patches they encountered one of thebees'-honey-guides too; but as they had an ample supply at the waggon,and all the buckets being, to Dinny's great annoyance, still in use, thebees were left in peace.
Game seemed to be scarce upon the plain that morning; but after a timeas they rode round the edge of a clump of trees, so beautiful in theirdisposition that they seemed to have been planted there for ornament,Mr Rogers saw, a couple of miles away upon the open plain, a herd ofsomething different to any of the animals they had before encountered.
He took out his glass and carefully inspected them, but declared himselfno wiser.
"Well, boys," he said, "whether we shoot one or no, we'll have a canterafter them. Let's keep down in that hollow, and round the little hillthere, so as to approach unseen. Look out for ant-bear holes. And now,one--two--three--forward!"
A touch from the heel made the beautiful animals they rode bound away,but with a cry of pain Dick reined in.
"My dear boy, what's the matter?" said Mr Rogers, pulling up, whileJack returned with a blank look of dismay upon his face.
"Thorns!" cried Dick viciously, as he gave a writhe in his saddle.
"Stop and pick 'em out with a pin," cried Jack. "Come along, father.Haw! haw! haw! I thought he was hurt!" Then sticking his knees intohis nag's side, he bounded off.
"Poor old fellow!" cried Mr Rogers, laughing. "You'll soon forgetthem." And he too galloped off, to try and circumvent the herd.
"Go on! ugly old Jack," shouted Dick, as he sat fast, checking hishorse, which wanted to follow. "You'll get a thorn or two in yourselfsome day."
He might have shouted this through a speaking trumpet, and his brotherwould not have heard, as, sitting well down in his saddle, he led theway into the hollow, his father close behind, and both thoroughlyenjoying their gallop.
"I don't care!" cried Dick sulkily, as he sat and watched them. "Pickout the thorns with a pin, indeed! See if I don't stick a pin in oldJack when he's asleep to-night--and how will he like it?"
Dick gave another writhe as he watched the two riders out of sight, andthen muttering in an ill-used way, "Pick 'em out with a pin indeed!" hehalf turned in his seat, lolling in his saddle, and patting and playingwith his horse, when lazily turning his eyes round amongst the clumps oftrees, he saw something moving amongst the leaves.
"Boa-constrictors!" he cried in his astonishment. "Monsters! Ugh! No,they're those great long-necked giraffes. They looked just like hugesnakes raising themselves amongst the trees."
Dick forgot all about the thorns as he nipped his nag's sides with hisknees, turned its head, and went off at a canter for the place where thegiraffes, seven or eight in number, were browsing upon the lowerbranches of the trees, their long necks seeming to writhe in and outamongst the branches in a way that quite justified Dick's idea of theirbeing serpents, for their bodies were invisible among the undergrowth.
For a few minutes the great animals did not see the approach of theyoung hunter; but the moment they caught sight of the fleet cob boundingover the sunburnt grass, they went off at a clumsy, waddling gallop,scattering as they went, their necks outstretched and eyes rolling;while the cob seemed to single out a beautifully marked calf, abouttwo-thirds grown, whose creamy skin was regularly spotted with richlight brown.
Dick's rifle was slung over his back, but he never once thought of usingit. In fact, he hardly knew in the excitement of the chase what heintended, and so he raced on past patch after patch of scattered trees,and past clumps of thorns, which both he and the cob carefully avoided.
Now they gained a little; but directly after the giraffe whisked itstail straight up over its back and put on more power, leaving the huntersome distance behind; and so the race went on for a couple of miles,Dick never once remembering his thorns, as he knew that it was only aquestion of time to run the great animal to a stand.
"Why, I could catch it then," cried Dick excitedly; and sticking hisheels into his horse, away they went over the grassy plain, gainingrapidly now; and though the giraffe kept on making an effort to increasethe distance, it was of no avail, for the cob raced on closer andcloser, and then avoiding the vicious kicks of the creature, deliveredwith tremendous forc
e by its bony legs, the cob raced on alongside.
There was a wonderful difference in the progress of the two animals--theone awkward, and seeming as if running on stilts; the other compact,muscular, and self-contained, evidently possessing double the endurancewith an equal speed to the giraffe.
On still and on, with the cob's sides flecked with foam, and the giraffeblundering now as it progressed. Once it turned sharp off to the left,but without a touch the cob wheeled as well, and kept alongside,watchfully keeping clear whenever he saw the giraffe about to kick,which it tried to do if there was a chance.
Dick was excited with the chase, so was the cob, which stretched outmore and more greyhound fashion as it raced along.
Fortunately, the grassy prairie-like stretch of land was clear ofobstacles, no ant-bear or other burrow coming in their path, or horseand rider would have fallen headlong; the eyes of both being fixed uponthe beautiful spotted coat of the giraffe, which, after rolling heavilyin its gait for a while, made one more effort to wheel round anddistance its pursuers, but stumbled in the act, and fell heavily uponits flank.
The cob stopped as if by instinct; and hardly knowing what he was about,Dick leaped down, avoided a kick by a quick jump, threw himself on tothe giraffe, kneeling upon its neck, and treating it as people do afallen horse, holding down its head upon the ground.
"Ah, you may kick and plunge," muttered Dick, panting and hot with hisexertions; "if a horse can't get up with his head held down, you can't."
And so it proved, for though the unfortunate giraffe kicked and plungedas it lay upon its flank, going through the motions of galloping, it wascompletely mastered without much call for effort. Certainly Dick's gunwas in his way, but he managed to unsling it with one hand, and threw itand his hat upon the grass, while the cob stood by, snuffing, snorting,and excited for a few moments at the giraffe's plunges, but settled downdirectly after to graze.
The grass was torn up by the giraffe's hoofs, but finding its effortsvain, it soon lay perfectly still, uttering a piteous sigh, as much asto say, "There, kill me out of my misery!" to which Dick responded bypatting its neck and stroking its nose, as he gazed in the greatprominent appealing eye, and noted the gentle mien of the tall animal.
Just as he had made the giraffe be perfectly still, he heard a distanthail, and looking up, there was Jack coming up at full gallop, wavinghis gun over his head, and with his father close behind; for,unknowingly, the race had led Dick somewhat in the direction taken byhis father and brother, who, after an unsuccessful gallop after a verywild herd, had drawn rein and witnessed the end of the giraffe chasethrough the glass.
"Why, Dick, where are the thorns?" cried his father, as they canteredup.
"Forgot all about 'em, father. Isn't he a beauty?"
"Where is he shot?" said Mr Rogers.
"Shot? He isn't shot. I ran him down," cried Dick.
"Don't kill him, then," cried Jack.
"Not I. Shall I let him go?"
"No, no," cried Jack. "Let's take him back, and tame him."
"I think the taming is already done," said Mr Rogers. "Here, halterhim round the neck, and muzzle him with this, and you can tie anotherthong on at the other side."
As he spoke he took a tethering halter from his saddle-bow; it wasslipped over the giraffe's head, another cord attached so that it couldbe held on either side; and when this was done, Mr Rogers held onerope, Jack the other, and Dick got off the giraffe on the side farthestfrom its legs.
But there was no more kick left in the tall creature, which raised itshead, looking humbly at its captors, and then slowly rose, shivering,and as gentle as a lamb.
"There, Dick, sling your gun and mount," cried his father; "unless youwould rather ride the giraffe."
"Oh, no, thank you," said Dick, slinging his gun and picking up his hat,prior to mounting his docile cob, after which his father handed him theend of the rope.
After a sniff or two at their tall companion, the two cobs walked gentlyon forward, with the giraffe towering up between. The poor beast madeno objection to its captivity, beyond sighing a little, but gazeddolefully at its leaders in turn; the only difficulty experienced ingetting it to the waggon, being how to accommodate the horses' stride tothat of the captive, which stalked contentedly along, with Mr Rogersbringing up the rear.