ii8 The Wild Elephant. 



the direction of the corral, which was studiously kept 

 dark ; and thither the teirified elephants betook them- 

 selves, followed by the shouts and racket of their pur- 

 suers. 



The elephants came on at a rapid pace, trampling 

 down the brushwood and crushing the dry branches ; the 

 leader emerged in front of the con-al, paused for an 

 instant, stared wildly round, and then rushed madly 

 through the open gate, followed by the rest of the herd. 

 Instantly, as if by magic, the entire circuit of the corral, 

 which up to this moment had been kept in profound 

 darkness, blazed witli thousands of lights, every hunter, 

 on the instant that the elephants entered, rushing for- 

 ward to the stockade with a torch kindled at the nearest 

 watch-fire. 



The elephants first dashed to the very extremity of the 

 enclosure, and being brought up by the fence, retreated 

 to regain the gate, but found it closed. Their teiTor was 

 sublime : they hurried round the corral at a rapid pace, 

 but saw it now girt by fire on every side ; they attempted 

 to force the stockade, but were driven back by tlie guards 

 with spears and flambeaux ; and on whichever side they 

 approached they were repulsed with shouts and volleys of 

 musketry. Collecting into one group, they would pause 

 for a moment in apparent bewilderment, then burst oft" in 

 another direction, as if it had suddenly occurred to them 

 to try some point which they had before overlooked ; but. 

 again baffled, they slowly returned to their forlorn resting- 

 place in the centre of the corral. 



The attraction of this strange scene was not confined 



