ELEPHANT HUNTING 243 



over the greater part of that country which is well fitted 

 for settlement; nor anywhere, if the herds grow too numer- 

 ous. It would be not merely silly, but worse than silly, to 

 try to stop all killing of elephants. The unchecked in- 

 crease of any big and formidable wild beast, even though 

 not a flesh eater, is incompatible with the existence of man 

 when he has emerged from the stage of lowest savagery. 

 This is not a matter of theory, but of proved fact. In place 

 after place in Africa where protection has been extended 

 to hippopotamus or buffalo, rhinoceros or elephant, it has 

 been found necessary to withdraw it because the protected 

 animals did such damage to property, or became such 

 menaces to human life. Among all four species cows with 

 calves often attack men without provocation, and old bulls 

 are at any time likely to become infected by a spirit of 

 wanton and ferocious mischief and apt to become man- 

 killers. I know settlers who tried to preserve the rhinoceros 

 which they found living on their big farms, and who were 

 obliged to abandon the attempt, and themselves to kill the 

 rhinos because of repeated and wanton attacks on human 

 beings by the latter. Where we were by Neri, a year or two 

 before our visit, the rhinos had become so dangerous, killing 

 one white man and several natives, that the District Com- 

 missioner who preceded Mr. Browne was forced to under- 

 take a crusade against them, killing fifteen. Both in South 

 Africa and on the Nile protection extended to hippopota- 

 mus has in places been wholly withdrawn because of the 

 damage done by the beasts to the crops of the natives, or 

 because of their unprovoked assaults on canoes and boats. 

 In one instance a last surviving hippo was protected for 

 years, but finally grew bold because of immunity, killed a 



