In the Volcanic Region 125 



I heard a sudden noise close behind me. All my followers 

 immediately fled behind the protecting bushes. I naturally 

 followed the new tembo (elephant) on the fresh trail. As, 

 however, he appeared to be rushing on ahead and I anticipated 

 a lengthy chase, I left the further pursuit to Weidemann, a 

 guide and an Askari. I then sent word to the camp for carriers 

 to come along and cut out the tusks and carry back the flesh of 

 the dead animal for our people. Then I turned back for my 

 prize, but, strange to tell, I could not find him. My "boy" 

 and a carrier searched in conjunction with me in vain for nearly 

 two hours, although it subsequently proved that several times we 

 were close to him. The similarity in the vegetation and the 

 many fresh tracks always led us round in a circle. Realising 

 the futility of this wandering I sat down on a fallen tree trunk 

 and was devouring my breakfast, when I heard eight shots fired 

 in quick succession in the direction of the last trail. It turned 

 out that Weidemann had come up with his elephant, which had 

 joined the herd, and had laid it low. It was a fine bull. 



When the carriers arrived from the camp I set them skirmish- 

 ing in all directions, and so at last we contrived to find the spoil 

 for which we had been searching so long. Later on the skulls 

 of both the elephants were carefully prepared and found their 

 way to Germany, as well as a perfect hide. These trophies were 

 the first evidences of the elephant race in volcanic regions which 

 found their way to a German museum. 



The bigger animal showed a height, measured from the back, 

 of 3.05 metres, a meagre measurement in comparison with the 

 powerful elephants of the plain who attain nearly four metres 

 in height. The comparatively powerful tusks, which were 

 2.05 metres long, and the worn grinders pointed to a fairly 

 good age and strengthened the view that smallness is a charac- 

 teristic of the mountain elephant. 



Amongst other animals found at the foot of the volcanoes, 

 the lion is occasionally met. These, however, appear to be 

 specimens that have wandered from the Rutschuru plain. 

 Apparently, too, there are two species of leopards of different 



