i8o THE WILDERNESS AND JUNGLE 



had been following the whole day. They were 

 halted in close order, the head and shoulders 

 of the big" one being covered from a shot by 

 the body of one of its fellows. I therefore 

 sat down just inside the edge of the cover and 

 examined them carefully through my glasses, 

 and soon made out that they were all bulls. 

 The tusks of the big one were disappointing, 

 and I did not estimate them at over 50 or 60 Ibs. 

 apiece. Then came a tuskless bull, the first I 

 had seen during six months in that part of 

 Rhodesia. Of the other two, the one that I 

 had first sighted alone seemed to carry short 

 tusks of about 30 Ibs. each, and the fourth had 

 longer and thinner tusks which would prob- 

 ably weigh 40 Ibs. each. 



u I had to wait about a quarter of an hour 

 at the edge of the clearing before I could get 

 a shot at the head of the biggest, but at last he 

 faced in my direction, and I took aim between 

 the eye and earhole and fired. He fell to the 

 shot, struggled half-way to his feet, and then 

 my left barrel knocked him over again. Until 

 I fired the second shot, the other elephants, 

 which were standing close together, had 

 scarcely moved ; but on hearing the second 

 report one of them turned tail and bolted, 

 going nearly straight away from me, while the 

 other two came at a rapid pace right for the 

 little tree against which I was standing. I 

 seemed to be in for a charge by the two un- 

 wounded elephants, and the prospect was not 

 a pleasing one, for there was not a solitary 

 tree of sufficient size to have afforded shelter, 



