334 THE RIFLE AND HOUND IN CEYLON, chap. xti. 



and exposure, that I matched exactly with the stem 

 of a tree against which I was leaning, and one of the 

 elephants kept advancing towards me until I could 

 nearly touch him with my rifle ; still he did not see 

 me, and I did not wish to fire, as I should alarm the 

 herd, which would then be lost for ever. Unfor- 

 tunately, just at this moment, the other elephant saw 

 Palliser, and the alarm was given. There was no help 

 for it, and we were obliged to fire. Mine fell dead, 

 but the other fell, and, recovering himself immediately, 

 he escaped in the thick jungle. 



This was bad luck, and we returned towards the 

 ' amblam ' to breakfast. On our way there we found 

 that the ' rogue ' had concealed himself in a piece of 

 thick jungle, backed by hills of very high lemon grass. 

 From this stronghold we tried to drive him, and posted 

 ourselves in a fine position to receive him should he 

 break cover ; but he was too cunning to come out, and 

 the beaters were too knowing to go in to drive such 

 bad jungle ; it was, therefore, a drawn game, and we 

 were obliged to leave him. 



When within a short distance of the ' amblam,' a 

 fine black partridge got up at about sixty yards. I 

 was lucky enough to knock him over with a rifle, and 

 still more fortunate in not injuring him much with the 

 ball, which took his wing off close to his body. 

 Half an hour afterwards he formed part of our break- 

 fast. 



