52 LEAVES FEOM THE 



the major and three others rode up ' to these stupendous 

 animals/ 



The sheikh's people began screeching violently; and 

 although the beasts at first appeared to treat the approach 

 of the cavalcade with great contempt ; yet, after a little, 

 they moved off, erecting their ears, which had till then 

 hung flat on their shoulders, giving a roar that shook the 

 ground under the horsemen. 



One (says the major) was an immense fellow, I should suppose 

 sixteen feet high ; the other two were females, and moved away 

 rather quickly, while the male kept in the rear, as if to guard their 

 retreat. We wheeled swiftly round him; and Maramy (a guide 

 sent by the sheikh), casting a spear at him, which struck him just 

 under the tail, and seemed to give him about as much pain as when 

 we prick our finger with a \)m, the huge beast threw up his pro- 

 boscis in the air with a loud roar, and from it cast such a volume 

 of sand, that, unprepared as I was for such an event, nearly blinded 

 me. The elephant rarely, if ever, attacks ; and it is only when 

 irritated that he is dangerous ; but he will sometimes rush upon 

 a man and horse, after choking them with dust, and destroy them 

 in an instant. 



Cut off from his companions, the elephant took the 

 direction leading to where the mule and the footmen had 

 been left. They quickly fled in all directions ; and the 

 man who rode the mule, which was not inclined to in- 

 crease its pace, was so alarmed that he did not get the 

 better of the fright for the whole day. The major and 

 his companions pressed the elephant very close, riding 

 before, behind, and on each side of him ; and his look 

 sometimes, as he turned his head, had the effect of check- 

 ing instantly the speed of the major's horse. His pace 

 never exceeded a clumsy rolling walk, but was sufficient 

 to keep the horses at a short gallop. Major Denham 

 fired a ball from each barrel of his gun at the beast, and 

 the second, which struck his ear, seemed to give him a 

 moment's uneasiness only. The first, which struck him 

 on the body, failed in making the least impression ; and, 



