356 AFRICA SPEAKS 



we motored through a district containing many elephant 

 herds. For miles we strained our eyes and ears, expect- 

 ing to encounter them at every turn, for the whole 

 countryside spoke eloquently of their presence. At 

 one place they had crossed the road just ahead of us, 

 leaving a path resembhng an earthquake's destruction. 

 Trees were thrown about in grand confusion, while the 

 ground was plowed up in all directions. 



We arrived at Wanda just ahead of a thunderstorm 

 and, finding no huts available for our use, we made 

 record time in putting up the tents. This task was 

 barely completed when the storm broke with tre- 

 mendous fury and continued to drench the district 

 throughout the entire night. We were soon^swimming 

 in red mud and everything became damp and clammy. 

 A heavy rain may be enjoyed while sitting in a com- 

 fortable room looking through a window, but in the 

 jungles it loses most of its poetry. To make our 

 misery at this camp complete, Austin Avas stricken 

 with a bad attack of fever. 



For many years the Belgian government has main- 

 tained a traioing station for elephants at Wanda. 

 From the wild herds that roam in the surrounding 

 forests, they capture young animals and these are 

 brought to the post for a course in discipline. They 

 are then sold to plantations or to the missions. The 

 African animal is quite different from the Indian 

 species, a much harder beast to domesticate, never 

 becoming entirely docile. Until the Belgians under- 

 took this work, it was thought impossible to train the 

 African elephant. They have succeeded to a certain 

 extent, but the results obtained are small considering 

 the amount of effort and time expended, and it is not 



