202 SCENE OF SAVAGE LIFE. 



on the ground, the men all armed with guns, or bows 

 and arrows, and spears. As I approached them they 

 commenced singing my praises ; but holding up my 

 hands I made them stop their row, informing the dusky 

 mob that as it was early in the morning, I should 

 most likely get a shot at antelope or buffalo, pro- 

 vided they made no noise. They promised to ob- 

 serve silence, and I must say I was quite astounded at 

 the way in which they kept their word. I walked 

 some fifty yards in advance, and when we had once 

 fairly started, not a word was to be heard among these 

 savages. So silently did we wend our way, that 

 on emerging from some thick underwood in the 

 forest, I found myself withm seventy yards of two 

 pallahs, and a single shot dropped one of them in his 

 tracks. 



But now the spell which had up to the present 

 bound the tongues of my swarthy followers was bro- 

 ken, and, as if in answer to my shot, they came rushing 

 up, yelling like maniacs. Three of them volunteered, 

 for a small quantity of calico, to take the fallen ante- 

 lope back to the boat, and were soon on their way. 

 The remainder of the walk to the scene of the late 

 action was conducted in the same orderly manner as 

 the commencement. They were silent and obedient 

 till they sighted the four dead elephants, when a scene 

 that baffles all description was enacted. They rushed 

 on them with knives, spears, battle-axes, and arrow- 

 heads, fighting over their meat like hungry Avolves. 

 The beasts were soon ripped open, and I saw several 

 of these men actually standing up to their waists in 

 the entrails, pulling and tearing them out. The 



