DISORDER IN THE CAMP. 323 



rijen returned breathless with excitement to report that 

 they liacl discovered the two bull el(3phants browsing in 

 a grove of thorny trees on the mountain side within a 

 quarter of a mile of us. I approached under cover of a 

 bushy tree, on clearing which T beheld two of the finest 

 elephants in Africa standing broadside on within fifty 

 yards. The finer of these had one of his tusks broken 

 short off by the lip ; I therefore chose his comrade, 

 which carried a pair of very long and perfect tusks. I 

 had hard work with this elephant, and the sun was 

 under before I laid him low. 



On the 4th I rode for my bower on the JNIahalapia, 

 in the hope of finding my wagons waiting for me ; but 

 I had misgivings about my men, who ought to havo 

 appeared on the evening of the 2d. On reaching my 

 bower where the former elephant had died, I found the 

 fires still smoking, but every man had disappeared: 

 Carollus, whom I had ordered to await me, had vanished 

 with the rest. I now fancied that I miist have missed 

 the natives who had passed me on their way to the ele- 

 phant of the previous day, and that Carollus had joined 

 the wagons wherever they might be. I was right in 

 my conjecture, and presently, on firing a signal shot, I 

 received an answer from the wagons, which were drawn 

 up in the romantic gorge of Sabie, as near as might bo 

 to the water. Drunkenness and disorder had jirevailcd 

 during my absence, as I had feared ; my chests wero 

 broken open, the fine captents of both my wagons wera 

 most seriously damaged, oxen had been lost, and horses 

 ridden off their legs in search of them. It appeared 

 that Mr. Kleinboy had been the chief delinquent. Un- 

 der the influence of the liquor, and anxious to distin- 

 guish himself, ho had resolved to try his hand intiunt- 

 ing the giraffe. Accordingly, he saddled Colesberg, my 



