XLIII. H. Cloete to Swellengrebel,
8.4.1791
A half-caste Hottentot, named Gerrit Slinger, told a remarkable story about the kinds of wild animals which are found in the interior.
A number of years ago he had accompanied a commando under Field Commandant Andries Petrus Berger which was sent out against the marauding Bushmen. As well as Christians the commando included several Hottentots. After the expedition was over, but whilst Berger was still busy hunting down other Bushmen, Slinger and 15 other Hottentots, went hunting. As far as he could remember, Cornelis and Vlek who were in the service of Charles Marais, Jantje who lived on the farm of Johannes Swanepoel, and some others, who were servants of Andries Petrus Berger were amongst the hunting party. They saw 9 strange animals and managed to shoot, chase them on horseback and kill one.
Whilst they were looking at this animal, which was quite unknown to them, burgher Louis van der Merwe Davidsz arrived on the scene and also observed it. It was of the following description.
It had the appearance of a horse; was greyish in colour, and had small white stripes behind the jaw. Sticking out in front of its head was a horn as long as an arm and as thick as an arm at the base. In the middle the horn was flattish but the point was very sharp. It was not fixed to the bones of the forehead but was only attached to the hide of the animal. A little tuft of hair grew two finger-breadths below the horn. The head was like that of a horse and it stood about as high as an ordinary Cape Horse. The ears were grey, and like those of an ox but a little bigger. Its tail was fairly long, from a distance appeared like a horse's, but from close by was fleshier, covered all over with short hair, ending in a white tuft of the same size and shape as an apple. The hooves were round like those of a horse. but underneath they had bovine cloven hooves and the testicles were like those of a tame bull.
This rare animal was shot between the so-called Table Mountain and the Zeekoe River, about 16 days' ride from the Camdebo which is about a month from the Cape by ox-waggon. Several burghers and Hottentots say they have seen this animal in Bushmen-drawings on hundreds of rocks and stones.
As scholars are still disputing whether the unicorn ever existed, I thought that I should give you this report which may throw light on the dispute, because here we no longer doubt in the least that such an animal does exist, or that it is found in this part of the world.
If there are enthusiasts who wish to put a premium on the hide of this
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