ON THE WEST COAST OF CEYLON. 101 



the elephant, which was gaining rapidly on our poor 

 friend. 



" Round a tree," shouted F , " run round a 



tree." The advice was none too soon, and Will 

 evidently heard, or had the same idea, for he turned 

 towards the nearest tree, the elephant not two lengths 

 behind him, and we, distanced in spite of our best 

 endeavours, were still forty yards behind. 



To our horror we saw him catch his foot in 

 something and down he went full length. I heard 



F groan with despair, and- dropping on my knee, 



fired two barrels uselessly into the brute's hind- 

 quarters. 



Whether the blood from half-a-dozen wounds had 

 blinded him, or Will's sudden disappearance into the 

 long grass had deceived him, I cannot say, but, half- 

 stopping, the elephant turned to the right and made 



off into the jungle. F , who had run on after I 



fired, gave him two more barrels in the hope of 

 bringing him into action once more, but he had lost 

 heart, and though we followed him for hours we never 

 got a sight of him again. This was certainly one of 

 the most miraculous escapes ever known in elephant- 

 shooting. That a rogue elephant should pause at all 

 in his charge, unless hit in the head, is unheard of; 

 and that any .elephant should abandon the object of 

 pursuit when actually on the ground, is equally so. 



I may as well recount the end of the elephant. 

 A fortnight after he was found dead in the jungle. 

 The Government reward was claimed by, and paid to, 

 no less a person than our friend Jim Crow. Fortu- 



