Elephant Shooting. 97 



on with liis trunk pendent and limp with a very 

 woe-begone aspect. I seized the other rifle, ran 

 forward, and as he flopped an ear I gave a shot 

 behind it, and with a stagger he fell forward. Poor 

 old beast ! Thank God, at last dead ! His agony must 

 have been fearful. One eye was shot out, one closed 

 by coagulated blood, and he had received upwards 

 of twenty bullets, yet the gallant brute never 

 uttered a groan ! His tusks were four feet eight 

 inches and four feet six inches respectively, but 

 thick and straight. Measuring the game by the foot 

 test, he was ten feet two inches high. 



But now where were we ? The Burman climbed a 

 tall tree, took a good look all round, and descended, 

 saying if we walked quickly we should get to camp by 

 dark. A sambur luckily crossed our path, which I 

 killed, and as I was deadbeat and very hungry I 

 preferred spending another night in the jungle and 

 having a square meal, to tramping further on an 

 empty stomach. The Burman soon broiled some 

 liver, which we eat, but had to partake of Adam's 

 ale none other being procurable ; then made a tem- 

 porary shelter overhead, slept, and cooked again in 

 the morning. About mid-day we reached camp. 

 The coolie had returned and reported that he had 

 seen me trampled to death by the elephant, so my 

 boy had gone to where the encounter had taken 

 place to pick up the pieces. He saw sufficient to 

 persuade him that we were not dead, but in chase 

 of the elephant, so he returned to camp and wisely 

 stuck to it, as he felt sure we should return there. 

 After a day's rest I took all hands, and as decom- 

 position had set in, we had no difficulty in drawing 





