XI LARGE HERD OF ELEPHANTS 215 



spread her ears and looked, and the next moment, 

 seeming to make me out, was just swinging round, 

 when I gave her a bullet between the neck and the 

 shoulder, bringing her to her knees. 



At the shot there was a tremendous commotion ; 

 but the behaviour of this large body of elephants 

 was very different from that of a small herd, which 

 would instantly have rushed away in a wild panic. 

 Those farthest off did not seem to know where the 

 danger lay, and came running up towards me at a 

 shambling sort of trot, many of the cows with their 

 trunks high in the air, trumpeting shrilly and making 

 a curious rumbling noise. Taking advantage of the 

 confusion, I gave another young bull a shot behind 

 the shoulder, and then hastily got the guns reloaded. 

 By this time the elephants had organised themselves 

 into bands, and were moving off in different 

 directions in large troops, but not going very fast. 

 The cow I had first shot now fell, and the young 

 bull I saw was also done for. At this juncture 

 Hartebeest outflanked the herd in which was the young 

 bull I had seen standing under the mopani tree, and 

 they all now came back right for me in a long line ; 

 so much for me, indeed, that 1 had to make tracks 

 hastily to get out of the way, as in this open country 

 I did not dare approach within a hundred yards or 

 so after the first robots. As the young bull passed 

 me I aimed well forwards, and saw the dust fly from 

 him just in the right place behind the shoulder. At 

 the shot a cow came rushing down towards us, 

 trumpeting loudly, with her trunk in the air ; but, 

 not seeming to make us out, was just turning, when 

 I gave her a ball with the second gun. After this I 

 killed another cow with a single bullet, which went 

 clean through her heart, and must have broken her 



