Capt William (later Sir William) Cornwallis Harris, an Indian Army officer, was an accomplished writer and an observant and reliable naturalist, as can be seen by the remarkable detail in the comprehensive captions to his portraits, as well as being the first really competent wildlife artist to appear on the southern African scene. He was the first to bring to the attention of western naturalists the existence of the sable antelope, called for some time afterwards, Harris’ buck. The record of southern Africa that he left behind is a unique and marvelous slice of time depicting an era that has disappeared for ever. The raw veld he once trod, where only the cough of the lion or the call of the jackal was heard at sundown, now echoes with the roar of Johannesburg’s rush-hour traffic.