NARROW ESCAPE FROM AN ENRAGED ELEPHANT. 335 
We followed the animal, and soon came upon him again 
in the dense bushes. He was very near, and I could see the 
blood oozing from wounds just over the region of the heart. 
Dodson now fired at the elephant’s head, and I at his 
chest; but although we heard the bullets tell loudly, the 
beast only put up his ears and passed out of sight. Again 
we followed, and again found the animal in an opening in 
the bushes. We put four more bullets into him, causing 
the animal to fall this time to his knees. He got up, fell 
again, and then, rising the third time, walked a little farther 
on, his body moving from side to side as though he were 
going to fall. At last he stopped, and turning sideways to 
the path he had taken, commenced to roar loudly. I use 
the word “ roar’’ as more nearly expressing the sound made 
by an elephant when maddened by pain than the word 
“trumpeting,” but the noise is like the rumbling of a trolley- 
car running at full speed. We could not see more than 
twenty yards along any of the paths in these bushes, as 
they crossed and recrossed continually. 
It was certainly dangerous business shooting in the 
dense jungle; but there stood the magnificent animal with 
blood dripping from his side from many wounds. The 
temptation was too great for me. Creeping to within 
twenty-five yards of the elephant, and stationing myself 
where the two paths intersected, I took a steady aim and 
fired. But what was the result? Instead of falling dead, 
as I had expected, the great head was turned suddenly 
around, and I caught the angry gleam of the two small 
eyes as they looked squarely at me. There was no doubt 
that the beast was on the point of charging. There were 
yards of ears coming suddenly forward from his shoulders, 
a trunk poised almost horizontally and raised only a little 
at the end, and a deep menacing sound coming from some- 
where within. The whole affair was over in a second — 
