IX MORE ELEPHANTS 169 



rousing two herds of buffaloes, and a black rhinoceros 

 with a small calf, I did not chance across any fresh 

 spoor of the animals of which I was in search, so, 

 returning to the water in the evening, I slept at a 

 distance of only three or four miles from where I 

 had camped the preceding night. The next day ] 

 made a new start, determined to keep straight on till 

 sundown, unless I crossed the spoor of elephants that 

 had drunk during the night, but the sun was scarcely 

 an hour high, when, as I walked in front, my eyes 

 were gladdened by the sight of the fresh footprints 

 of a fine bull, and another half-grown ; on walking 

 a little way into the jungle on their track, so as to 

 examine the spoor minutely, and settle about how 

 long ago they had passed, we soon found, from the 

 freshness of the leaves, broken twigs, and other 

 indications, that they must have drunk just about 

 daybreak, and as they were feeding along in fancied 

 security, I felt sure they were still not far distant. 

 The bull, we found by the spoor, had something the 

 matter (probably an old bullet) with his right fore- 

 leg, which he brought round at each step with a 

 sweep, making a semicircular furrow in the sand. 

 It seemed as though we might be led to a consider- 

 able distance from the river, so I told all my Kafirs 

 except my two gun-carriers to run back and fill the 

 calabashes with water as quickly as possible, and then 

 with my two attendants commenced strolling quietly 

 along the spoor, which was thickly strewn with leaves 

 and chewed bark, expecting the boys to catch us up 

 in a few minutes ; suddenly, as I was thus sauntering 

 along with my eyes bent on the ground, never 

 dreaming of anything of the sort, a slight rustling in 

 front of me caused me to look up, and there, not 

 twenty yards off, stood a fine bull elephant quietly 



