图书图片
PDF
ePub

stubble, he passed me, but charged quite over my friend's lurking-place, who aimed at him as he came on and lodged the ball in the rocky mass of horn above his head. The buffalo was so near at the time of firing that the horns struck the gunbarrel at the next instant; but whether the noise and smoke confused the animal, or he was partially stunned by the bullet, he missed my friend, and continued bis pursuit of the Hottentot, who dodged the enraged and terrific looking brute round the bushes; but through these slight obstacles he dashed with ease, and gaining ground rapidly, he overtook his victim, and knocked him down. At this crisis, my friend fired his second barrel into the beast, which gave the Hottentot one or two blows with his forefeet, and pushing his nose under, endeavoured to toss him; but the Hottentot, with much presence of mind, lay perfectly still.

My friend now shouted to me, "The buffalo is coming!" and in darting round a bush, I stumbled on my rifle, cutting my knee very badly. This alarm, however, proved to be false, for directly after, the buffalo fell dead near the Hottentot, who then rose and limped towards us. He was much hurt; a powder-flask, which lay in his game-bag, was stamped flat. The buffalo was too weak to use his full strength upon him, having probably exhausted all his remaining energy in the chase, otherwise the Hottentot would undoubtedly have been killed, since a man is safer even under the

paws of a wounded lion than under the head of an infuriated buffalo. "Life in the Wilderness."

To leeward. All wild animals have a remarkably keen scent. In approaching them, accordingly, the sportsman has to be careful to avoid moving in the same direction as the wind. He tries always to reach them by moving against the wind.

Periodical stream.-A stream that flows only during the

rainy season, but is dry during the rest of the year.

QUESTIONS:-1. Who are the Hottentots? 2. Why did the hunter proceed to leeward? 3. What is a periodical stream? 4. Describe the killing of the buffalo. 5. What is dodging! 6. What is meant by the buffalo overtaking his victim?

LESSON LVI.
Rain in Summer.

com-mo'-tion, excitement, glee.
di-lat'-ed, stretched wide.
en-gulfs', swallows up, sinks.
gut'-ter,the channel at the side
of the streets or roads for
carrying off the water.

in-ces'-sant, continuous.
lus'-trous, shining, clear.
tur'-bu-lent, eddying.
twist'-ed, running zig-zag.
yoke-en-cum'-ber-ed, carry-
ing the yoke on its neck.

How beautiful is the rain!
After the dust and the heat,
In the broad and fiery street,
In the narrow lane,

How beautiful is the rain!

How it clatters along the roofs,

Like the tramp of hoofs !

How it gushes and struggles out

From the throat of the overflowing spout!

Across the window-pane

[blocks in formation]

And swift and wide,

With a muddy tide,

Like a river down the gutter roars

The rain, the welcome rain!

The sick man from his chamber looks

At the twisted brooks;

He can feel the cool

Breath of each little pool;

His fevered brain

Grows calm again,

And he breathes a blessing on the rain.

From the neighbouring school

Come the boys,

With more than their wonted noise

And commotion;

And down the wet streets

Sail their mimic fleets,

Till the treacherous pool

Engulfs them in its whirling

And turbulent ocean.

In the country on every side,

Where far and wide,

Like a leopard's tawny and spotted hide

Stretches the plain,

To the dry grass and the drier grain

How welcome is the rain!

In the furrowed land

The toilsome and patient oxen stand;

Lifting the yoke-encumbered head,
With their dilated nostrils spread,
They silently inhale

The clover-scented gale,

And the vapours that arise

From the well-watered and smoking soil.

For this rest in the furrow after toil

Their large and lustrous eyes

Seem to thank the Lord,

More than man's spoken word.

Near at hand

From under the sheltering trees,

The farmer sees

His pastures and his fields of grain,
As they bend their tops

To the numberless beating drops

Of the incessant rain.

He counts it as no sin

That he sees therein

Only his own thrift and gain.

H. W. LONGFELLOW.

QUESTIONS:-1. What renders rain particularly pleasant in summer? 2. What noise does it make on the roofs? 3. What is the "overflowing spout"? 4. What is a "gutter"? 5. How does the sick man regard the summer rain? 6. Why are the brooks called "twisted"? 7. Describe the conduct of schoolboys in the rain. 8. What are their "mimic fleets"? 9. What are these fleets often made of? 10. How are they wrecked? 11. What appearance has the country after a long drought? 12. What is the colour of a leopard's hide? 13. How do the oxen regard the rain? 14. What are "yoke-encumbered" oxen? 15. With what animals do we generally till our fields? 16. What effect has the rain upon the farmer?

LESSON LVII.

con-clude', judge, infer.
de-pos'-it-ing, letting fall.
el'-e-ment, natural place.
flit'-ting, flying lightly.
fore-tell', predict.

ha'-lo, red circle.

Omens.

in-di-ca'-tion, sign, symptom.

moist'-ure, damp, wet.

mi-gra'-tion, moving from one place to another.

por-tends', foretells, shows beforehand.

pre-cip'-i-tated, thrown down. sen'-si-ble, perceptible.

stra'-ta, layers.

trans-par'-ent, can be seen through.

vul'-gar, the common people.

A. I HOPE we shall have another good day tomorrow, for the clouds are red in the west.

B. I have no doubt of it, for the red has a tint of purple.

A. Do you know why this tint portends fine weather?

B. The air when dry, I believe, refracts more red or heat-making rays; and as dry air is not perfectly transparent, they are again reflected in the horizon. I have observed generally a coppery or yellow sunset to foretell rain; but as an indication of wet weather approaching nothing is more certain than a halo round the moon, which is produced by the precipitated water; and the larger the circle, the nearer the clouds, and consequently the more ready to fall.

A. I have often observed that the old proverb is correct

« 上一页继续 »