THE following anecdote is illustrative of the acuteness of 

 the elephant's sense of smell. It was related to Sparrman by 

 a hunter of the name of Dirk Marcus, of course a Dutchman. 

 " Once," says Dirk, "in my younger days, when from a hill 

 covered with bushes near a wood I was endeavoring to steal 

 upon an elephant to the leeward of me, on a sudden I heard 

 a frightful cry or noise from the lee side, and although I was 

 at that time one of the boldest elephant hunters in that country, 

 I must confess I was in a terrible quaking, so much so that I 

 believe the hairs on my head stood quite erect. At the same 

 time it appeared to me as though I had several pails of water 

 thrown over me, without my being able to stir from the spot, 

 until I saw this huge creature so near me that he was almost 



(499) 



