NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



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herd came charging down upon them. Luckily the 

 men heard them coming while yet some distance 

 away, and managed to escape in time. 



A few years ago a sportsman stalked a small herd 

 of Addo Elephants, and mortally wounded the bull. 

 The cows made off, but finding the bull was unable 

 to follow, they quickly returned. Some of them 

 made a furious charge at the sportsman, who rode 

 off to escape them. The others, meanwhile, ranged 

 up on either side of the wounded bull, and supported 

 him with their bodies, trunks and tusks. In this 

 way they helped him along towards the heart of the 

 bush, but their aid was in vain, for he eventually 

 laid down and died. 



On another occasion a party of sportsmen in search 

 of Buffalo surprised a herd of Elephants in this same 

 bush ; one was a herd bull and the rest were cows. 

 On the instant several cows hustled and pushed the 

 bull off through the dense, tangled bush, while the 

 remainder formed up in the rear, and so threatening 

 was their demeanour, that had a shot been fired 

 they would assuredly have charged down upon the 

 party. It is extremely dangerous for a man to 

 penetrate deep into the Addo Bush in pursuit of 

 Elephants, for the various trees of which this great 

 bush is made up only average from 6 to 12 feet in 

 height, and are in consequence of no use to climb 

 into should the Elephants become aggressive. The 

 bush is too thick to make it possible to hunt the 

 Elephant on horseback, and a man stands a very 



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