262 ELEPHANT-HUNTING [ch. x 



with her. Late in the afternoon we saw an elephant a 

 mile and a half away, crossing a corner of the open 

 downs. We followed its trail until the light grew too 

 dim for shooting, but never overtook it, although at the 

 last we could hear it ahead of us breaking the branches ; 

 and we made our way back to camp through the dark- 

 ness. 



The other day made amends. It was Kermit's turn 

 to shoot an elephant and mine to shoot a rhinoceros, 

 and each of us was to act as the backing gun for the 

 other. In the forenoon we saw a bull rhino with a good 

 horn walking over the open downs. A convenient hill 

 enabled us to cut him off without difficulty, and from 

 its summit we killed him at the base, fifty or sixty yards 

 off. His front horn was nearly twenty-nine inches long ; 

 but though he was an old bull, his total length, from 

 tip of nose to tip of tail, was only twelve feet, and he 

 was, I should guess, not more than two-thirds the bulk 

 of the big bull I killed in the Sotik. 



^^^e rested for an hour or two at noon, under the 

 shade of a very old tree with glossy leaves and orchids 

 growing on its gnarled, hoary limbs, while the unsaddled 

 horses grazed and the gun-bearers slept near by, the 

 cool mountain air, althougli this was midday, imder the 

 Equator, making them prefer the sunlight to tlie shade. 

 When we moved on it was through a sea of bush ten 

 or fifteen feet liigh, dotted here and there with trees, 

 and riddled in every direction by the trails of elephant, 

 rhinoceros, and buffalo. Each of these animals fre- 

 quents certain kinds of country to which the other two 

 rarely or never penetrate ; but here they all three found 

 ground to their liking. Except along their winding- 

 trails, which were tunnels where the jungle was tall. 



