CHAP. iv. A CHASE UNDER DIFFICULTIES. 69 



It is at the first burst impossible to tell whether the 

 elephant is coming at you or rushing away. In either 

 case it is extremely dangerous, as these chena jun- 

 gles are almost devoid of trees ; thus there is no covei 

 of sufficient strength to protect a man should he attempt 

 to jump on one side, and he may even be run over by 

 accident. 



A few moments assured us of their retreat, and 

 we instantly followed upon their track, running at full 

 speed along the lane which they had crushed in their 

 headlong flight. This was no easy matter ; the jungle 

 itself was certainly broken down, but innumerable 

 hooked thorns, hanging from rope-like creepers, which 

 had been torn down by the rush of the elephants, 

 caught us upon every side. In a few minutes oui 

 clothes were in rags, and we were bleeding from count- 

 less scratches, but we continued the chase as fast as we 

 could run upon the track. The prickly cactus which 

 abounds in these jungles, and grows to the height of 

 twenty feet, in some places checked us for a few mo- 

 ments, being crushed into a heap by the horny-footed 

 beasts before us. These obstacles overcome, we again 

 pushed on at a rapid pace, occasionally listening for a 

 sound of the retreating game. 



We now observed that the herd had separated ; the 

 bull had gone off in one direction, and the female with 

 her half-grown poonchy in another. Following the lat- 

 ter, we again pushed on at a quick run, as the elephants 



