172 MY SOMALI BOOK 



Henduleh alone with me. We were soon close up, 

 and presently, the bush here not being very thick, 

 spotted three of them, fifty yards ahead. Then out 

 came the camera and great was my disgust to find it 

 only contained a single film unexposed. Then a puff 

 of wind from the left (it had hitherto been straight 

 from the front) alarmed me lest I should not get my 

 photo. The elephants, too, were moving on and the 

 bush seemed thicker ahead, so creeping hurriedly for- 

 ward I got in a snap at forty j^ards or so. Further off 

 than I had intended and not at a favourable moment, 

 but T was over-anxious. Then, of course, as soon as 

 the deed was done, they stopped again, and I crept 

 forward to a tree from behind which for five long 

 minutes I was able to watch at my leisure a fine old 

 tusker, as he stood only twenty-five yards away 

 munching some sansevieria plants torn up by his trunk. 

 Waving trunk and great flapping ears, they were never 

 still, while his ridiculous little eye, all the time, appar- 

 ently, was fixed on me. But his expression was one 

 of placid content, very different to what it would have 

 been had he realised the dangerous proximity of man- 

 kind, his deadliest, his only foe. 



To be so close aiid yet unable to shoot ! My 

 fingers were itching for the trigger ; but though the 

 rifle remained handy in case of accident, the feeling 

 passed away, and I was content to stand and watch. 

 For my privilege was no small one. The lion is a 

 royal beast, say his detractors what they may ; but 

 were the elephant to put forward his claim, who could 

 deny his title to be the real King of the African jungle ? 

 My thoughts wandered back to happy hours spent 



