NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



scream of rage, charged the little creature. This 

 was the Hottentot's opportunity, and, gliding from 

 his thorny retreat, now nearly demolished, he sped 

 away into the dense bush, and eventually reached 

 home, punctured all over with thorns. 



During times of drought the Addo Elephants, 

 driven almost mad with thirst, often break out of 

 the bush during the night and make their way to the 

 farmers' dams, and do considerable damage. It is 

 a common occurrence for them to break down fences 

 in the neighbourhood. Some of the exasperated 

 farmers shoot at them whenever they appear, and 

 set spring-guns at various exits from the bush. A 

 farmer who lives on the outskirts of the Addo Bush 

 employs a man for the sole purpose of repairing the 

 damage done by Elephants to his fences. There 

 are at least three herds of Elephants in the 

 Addo Bush, and several parties of five or six to 

 a dozen individuals. These Elephants retire to 

 the densest portions of the forest in a great kloof 

 known as Long Kloof, and during the daytime and 

 at night they issue forth to feed, and traverse con- 

 siderable distances, visiting isolated patches of bush 

 in the neighbourhood. There are regular beaten 

 tracks which they traverse nightly. To reach some 

 of their feeding grounds they are obliged to travel 

 over open, treeless veld. They take care, however, 

 to get back to sanctuary in the densely-wooded 

 kloofs before dawn. 



Several of the Elephants in the herds are in a 

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