218 THROUGH ANGOLA 



in Africa, feeds during the night, early morning, 

 and late evening, resting during the hotter hours 

 of the day under trees or in patches of elephant 

 grass, and it is usually at this time of day that 

 they are found by the hunter, who has probably 

 followed their spoor since early morning. 



Contrary to the usual belief, the elephant 

 occasionally lies down (I have seen this happen 

 on two occasions). The idea that elephants are 

 very short of sight and hearing is possibly due 

 to the fact that they are often approached when 

 dozing at midday, feeding or self-absorbed in 

 other ways, and not on the look out for the sight 

 or sound of a human enemy ; and my own experi- 

 ence is, that when expecting danger, or wounded, 

 their sight and hearing are better than generally 

 supposed. 



It is fortunate that the elephant's sight is 

 somewhat defective, for with their acute sense of 

 smell, and remarkable intelligence, these animals 

 are dangerous to hunt, and have become exception- 

 ally so since the institution of Game Laws, which, 

 by limiting the hunter in the size and number 

 of his elephants, compels him to approach close 

 to or among a herd, to select his animal. In such 

 circumstances, the hunter may find himself within 

 a few feet of one or more elephants, and have 

 some difficulty in escaping from cows or young 

 bulls, even when the selected bull has been killed. 



Should a young hunter find himself surrounded 

 by alarmed elephants, and have killed the bull 

 by a brain shot in that area of the skull which 

 would be represented by a football placed with 



