ELEPHANT SHOOTING 



THE VANISHED ELEPHANT 



A friend, W e, who is short-sighted and uses 



an eyeglass, was in camp with me in the Mysore 

 district, intent on shooting. 



We had just marched from Rampore to Kalkerra 

 in the Ainurmarigudi forest, when the news was 

 brought that a tusker had been found for us only 

 three miles off. We proceeded to the place, and 

 saw the elephant in the distance. 



W e now asked me to halt for a few minutes 

 while he mopped his face, and wiped his eyeglass, 

 which had become misty from perspiration. Then 

 we advanced, but the elephant was no longer visible, 

 and we went cautiously, closer and closer, until I 

 wondered what could have become of him still not 

 a sign of him did we see. W T hen we had viewed 

 him, he was moving about in a nullah in which 

 there was much high reed, but now he was quite 

 invisible, and appeared to have vanished into thin 

 air. At last, just in front of us, we saw the ele- 

 phant lying on his side in a swampy place, his 

 head pillowed on dry ground on our side. We 

 got up to within less than Jive paces, and then 



W e fired. At the shot the elephant got up, 



and as he was crossing our left front in a great 

 hurry, I dropped him dead by the temple shot. 



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