Lake Victoria to Khartoum 



seemed more like half an hour — up went the 

 •256, and down crashed the elephant. As quick 

 as thought my hand shot behind me to grasp the 

 cordite rifle that I knew I should find shoved into 

 it. [All good gun-bearers are almost treading on 

 their master's coat-tails ! ] However, there was 

 no need for it. The Mannlicher had done its 

 work, and the stricken monarch had entered into 

 his happy hunting grounds. Quite a nice bull 

 too, with tusks that turned out to scale 85 lbs. 

 apiece. Nothing very wonderful, but above the 

 average. 



My followers all rushed off to call their pals, 

 and anyone they could raise in fact, not excluding 

 women and children, to come and help cut the 

 tusks out, and afterwards to join in the wild orgy 

 that would soon take place on the field of battle. 

 They would spend the whole night and part of the 

 next day there cutting up, cooking, and eating as 

 fast as they could force the flesh down their 

 throats. I saw the tusks cut out and started off 

 to camp in charge of one of my orderlies, having 

 duly dispensed " backsheesh " to everyone who 

 had had a finger in the pie. 



There was still the other bull with the three 

 cows to account for. I got into his tracks, and, as 

 they led rather in the direction of my camp, 

 began following them up. Soon they turned 

 right round and led backwards rather towards the 

 recent scene of operations. Then they seemed 



258 



