■ If 17 7 5 . guard try to force him from this afylu’m, as the elephant protected him with his trunk. The next morning the foldier, recovering from his drunken fit, fhuddered with horror to find himfelf ftretched under the belly of this huge animal. The elephant, which, without doubt, per- -ceived the man’s embarraflment, careffed him with his trunk, in order to infpire him with courage, and make him underhand, that he might now depart in fafety. ( B u f f o n , p. 78.) A painter was defirous o f drawing the elephant which was kept in the menagerie at Verfailles in an uncommon attitude, which was that of holding his trunk raifed up in the air with his mouth open. The painter’s boy, in o r -. der to keep the :animal in this pofture, threw fruit into his mouth; but as the lad frequently deceived him, and made an offer only of throwing him the fruit, he grew angry-; and, as i f he had known, that the painter’s in-’ tention o f drawing him was the caufe of the affront that was offered him, inftead o f revenging himfelf on the lad, he turned his refentment 011 the mailer, and taking up a quantity of water in his trunk, threw it on the paper on which the painter was drawing, and fpoiled it. (Mem. pour fervir a PHiJl. des Animaux, par MeJJieurs de PAcad. des Sciences, Part III.) On the 4th we came to L,eeuwen-bofch,' a little wfood fo called, on a river of the fame name, from the circumftance of its having been formerly'in a peculiar manner inhabited by lions. At this time there lived here a llave of each lex, for the purpofe of tending a few cattle belonging to 3, farmer, and of preferving the corn-fields from the inroads roads of the gazels. , : ,The ilave’s hut v» > j. ... 1..^ ^ - - comap ofed t■ he whole November. or the. buildings o\\ the premifes, beiides an open ihed, under which we took our night’s lodging. On the 5 th w;e entered into Sitficamma, where we viiit- ed the three firfi farmers that lay in our road. As in this province ifiere were various unknown plants, and no natu- ralift had been .there .before us, we ilaid there till, the r ath, when we took our departure, and fet off for Zee-f koe, or Sea-cow-river •, and finally, from the 1 3 th to the cpnciuilon of the month, took up our lodging in a farm fitiiated at the loyyer or fouthern ferry-place of this river. On the eaftern fide of Leeuwen-bofcb the country may be faid to be a champam or open country, the long range of hills, by the fide qf. which, wp, had travelled all the way from the Cape, terminated .here, ,or elfe running on. to thp north. This .tradt of land feems to come under the cfraradter I have given, of, the Sweet grafs-fields and plains, towards the fhore,,. The.fame may be faid o f the hither part of Sitficamma, which, efpecialjy near the fhore, was extremely low and fandy;. . . The myrica, cerífera is likewife to be found here, as well as at the Duyven, or Doves, as they are called at the Cape. The greenifh wax-like and tallowy fubftance, with which at a certain time of the year the berries are covered, and which is,probably formed by infedts, being ufed by the inhabitants for making candles, which burn rather better than thofe prepared from tallow. On the plains I faw numerous herds of the antilope dorcas, (or bartbeejl, vide Plate I. Vol. II.) and likewife faw the gnometie, or little gazel, I fpoke of at p. 279. V o l . I. Y y The
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