HEADS OF RHINOCEROSES.

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and of Sumatra, resembles the African in having two horns, but in other respects differs considerably.

Though the rhinoceros is abundant in the interior of Af

rica, it is described as far more numerous in Asia, and as less generally distributed than the elephant.

Four distinct species of rhinoceroses are known to exist in South Africa, two of which are of a dark color, and two of a whitish hue. Hence they are usually designated the "black" and the "white" rhinoceros.

One of the two species of "black"-the Borele, as it is called by the Bechuanas-is the common small black rhinoc

*The above wood-cut is a rough but characteristic outline of the heads of the four distinct species of rhinoceroses recognized as indigenous to Africa. The two lowest heads in the sketch are those of the "black."

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HORNS OF RHINOCEROS OSWELLII.

eros (rhinoceros bicornis); the other, the Keitloa (rhinoceros Keitloa), or the two-horned black rhinoceros, as it is also termed by naturalists. The latter differs from the Borele in being somewhat larger, with a longer neck; in having the horns of nearly equal length, with a lesser number of wrinkles about the head; and it is of a more wild and morose disposition. The upper lip of both (more especially in the Keitloa) is pointed, overlaps the lower, and is capable of extension. It is pliable, and the animal can move it from side to side, twist it round a stick, collect its food, or seize with it any thing it would carry to its mouth. Both species are extremely fierce, and, excepting the buffalo, are perhaps the most dangerous of all the beasts in Southern Africa.

Of the white species, we have the common white rhinoceros (rhinoceros simus, Burch.), called Monoohoo by the Bechuanas, and the Kobaaba (rhinoceros Oswell, Gray), or long

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horned white rhinoceros.* that the two species chiefly differ from each other; for while the anterior horn of the Monoohoo has an average length of two or three feet, curving backward, that of the Kobaaba not unfrequently exceeds four feet, and is slightly pointed forward, inclining from the snout at about an angle of forty-five degrees. This rhinoceros is also the rarer of the two, and is only found in the more interior parts of South Africa.

It is with regard to their horns

The chief distinguishing characteristics of the white rhinoceros are its superior size, the extraordinary prolongation of its head, which is not far from one third of the whole length of the animal's body, its square nose (hence also designated "square-nosed rhinoceros"), and the greater length of the anterior horns.

The "black" and the "white" rhinoceros, though so nearly allied to each other, differ widely in their mode of living, habits, &c. The chief sustenance of the former animal consists of the roots of certain bushes, which it plows up with its strong horn, and the shoots and tender boughs of the "wait-a-bit" thorn; while the "white" rhinoceros, on the contrary, feeds solely on grasses.

In disposition, also, there is a marked distinction between them; for while the "black" is of a very savage nature, the

* Only the horns of this species have been described by naturalists. Dr. Gray, of the British Museum, seems to be one of the first who drew attention to the Kobaaba as a distinct rhinoceros. In the "Proceedings of the Zoological Society,” No. ccl., p. 46, the following details appear. They were obtained from a pair of horns (of which the wood-cut in the opposite page is an excellent likeness) presented by Mr. Oswell to Colonel Thomas Steele, of Upper Brook Street:

"The front horn is elongated and thick; but, instead of being bent back, as is the general character of R. bicornis, or erect, as in R. simus, it is bent forward, so that the upper surface is worn flat by being rubbed against the ground. The front horn is thirty-one inches long, flat, square, rough and fibrous in front, rounded and smooth behind. The hinder horn, eleven inches in length, is short, conical, and sub-quadrangular."

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DESCRIPTION OF RHINOCEROS.

“white,” on the other hand, is of a comparatively mild disposition, and, unless in defense of its young, or when hotly pursued, or wounded, will rarely attack a man.

The body of the rhinoceros is long and thick; its belly is large, and hangs near the ground; its legs are short, round, and very strong; and its hoofs are divided into three parts, each pointing forward. The head, which is remarkably formed, is large; the ears are long and erect; its eyes small and sunk. The horns,.which are composed of a mass of fine longitudinal threads or laminæ, forming a beautifully hard and solid substance, are not affixed to the skull, but merely attached to the skin, resting, however, in some degree, on a bony protuberance above the nostrils. It is believed by many that, when the animal is at rest, the horns are soft and pliable, but that, when on the move, they at once become hard and solid. Moreover, that it can, at will, turn the posterior horn, the other horn meanwhile remaining firm and erect; but there can scarcely be sufficient foundation for such notions.

In size the African rhinoceros—the white species, at least -is only exceeded by the elephant. A full-grown male (R. simus) measures from the snout to the extremity of the tail (which is about two feet) between fourteen and sixteen feet, with a circumference of ten or twelve. To judge from these data, and the general bulkiness of the body, it can not weigh less than from four to five thousand pounds. In our "bushcuisine" we reckoned one of these animals equal to three good-sized oxen.

The general appearance of the African rhinoceros is not unlike that of an immense hog shorn of his hair, or, rather, bristles, for, with the exception of a tuft at the extremity of the ears and the tail, it has no hair whatever; and, as if in mockery of its giant form, its eyes are ludicrously small-so small, indeed, that at a short distance they are imperceptible. Altogether, what with its huge body, misshapen head,

AGE-STRENGTH-SPEED-FOOD.

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ungainly legs and feet, and diminutive organs of vision, the rhinoceros is the very image of ugliness.

I have no data that would enable me to determine the age of this animal, but if we are to judge from the length of time that the horns require to be perfected, and supposing the animal to continue to grow in the mean while, it may be safely conjectured that he is one of the most long-lived of beasts. Indeed, it is probable he attains the age of one hundred years.

In strength the rhinoceros is scarcely inferior to the elephant. Of its prodigious power sufficient evidence was shown in the manner in which it charged the missionary wagon, as mentioned at page 50 of this volume. It is on record, moreover, that the rhinoceros which Emanuel, King of Portugal, sent to the Pope in the year 1513, destroyed, in a paroxysm of fury, the vessel in which he was transported.

Ungainly and heavy as the rhinoceros looks, it is, nevertheless, so exceedingly swift of foot-at least as regards the black species" that a horse with a rider," to quote the words of Gordon Cumming, "can rarely manage to overtake it." The testimony of Captain Harris is to the like effect; for, when speaking of the chase of this animal, and after telling us that it is most difficult to kill, he says, "From its clumsy appearance, one would never suppose it could dart about as it does, like lightning."

The food of the rhinoceros consists entirely, as mentioned, of vegetables, shoots of trees, grasses, &c. It is fond of the sugar-cane, and eats all kinds of grain ;* but it does not seem to be a voracious feeder. Indeed, it would appear to be somewhat fastidious in the selection of its food, in search of which it wanders far and wide.

* The Asiatic specimen in the Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park, is fed on clover, straw, rice, and bran. His daily allowance is one truss of straw, three quarters of a truss of clover, one quart of rice, half a bushel of bran, and twenty to twenty-four gallons of water.