It is shown that among four models of the Nijmegen baryon--baryon interaction, only model F is consistent both with the analysis of \Sigma ^- atoms and (K^-,\pi ) reactions. Simple estimates of the strong-interaction shifts and widths of the lowest observed levels of \Sigma ^- atoms are applied for model F with satisfying results. It is concluded that model F is favored as a realistic representation of the \Sigma N interaction.

PACS numbers: 13.75.Ev, 36.10.Gv