AYith Flashlight and Rifle -+> 



quite clearly that I experienced at this moment no feeling 

 ot anxiety, but merely one of intense suspense and curiosity 

 as to what my fate would be. A thousand thoughts 

 seemed to Hash simultaneously through my mind and 

 then make way for a sort ot apathetic sense of resignation, 

 coupled with the reflection that the elephants were well 

 within their rights in wreaking vengeance upon their 

 attackers ! 



In front of me ran my men, who had thrown everything 

 aside, and as I ran, clasping my rifle in my right hand, 

 I felt instinctively for cartridges in the left-hand pocket 

 of mv breeches, saving to mvself as I did so that a few 



- .- O y 



more bullets more or less counted for nothing against 

 so great a number of animals. 



We had fled to one side, as I have mentioned, because 

 this is the way to escape a charging elephant, owing to 

 his defective eyesight. fust as I felt that they must be 

 upon us, I heard in the midst of the muffled thunder ot 

 their stampede a terrible trumpeting, and in the same 

 moment one ot my men, now far ahead, called out to me : 

 " They are running away, master ! " 



Turning round 1 find that the bull I shot has fallen 

 to the o-round, and that all the others have taken rli^ht 



o o 



to the side in the direction in which they had originally 

 started. Seeing this, my best men hurry up, and I 

 succeed in getting a bullet into the shoulder of a very 

 large but apparently ailing cow, which is bringing up the 

 rear for, there being now no longer any danger of death, 

 my anxiety to get hold of a young elephant has come 

 back to me. Before I could reload, the entire herd 



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