INDIAN SHOOTING 229 



The main points to be considered by the sportsman may 

 be shortly summarised as follows : 



The brain, which at most only presents a mark of about twelve 

 inches in length by six inches in height, is situated low down and 

 far back in the skull, the centre of it being nearly in the line 

 between the two ear- holes. The three chief shots are the front 

 shot, in the centre of the forehead towards the top of the 

 bump at the base of the trunk, and about three inches higher 

 than a line drawn between the eyes ; the temple shot, the head 

 of the elephant being at right angles to the sportsman, through 

 the ear-hole in a line to pass through the opposite ear ; the 

 rear shot, behind the ear in the hollow just over the large bump 

 at the junction of the jaw and neck. It must be taken at about 

 an angle of 45 with the elephant's course from behind. These 

 are the shots to be tried for ; if the elephant's head is inclined 

 at an angle, calculation has to be made to determine the line of 

 the brain. If charging with the head carried high and trunk 

 curled, it is almost impossible to kill him with a front shot, but 

 heavy rifles will generally stop him. In head shots an elephant 

 not killed on the spot generally escapes, so no time should be 

 lost in finishing one that is floored. For weapon, a 4-smoothbore 

 spherical ball with twelve drachms of powder is recommended. 

 Indian elephants are seldom shot behind the shoulder, for as 

 Sanderson says, ' When an elephant can be approached to 

 within a few yards, and dropped on the spot, it is hardly 

 sportsmanlike to take a long shot, and risk wounding the 

 animal uselessly.' Females in a herd are always the first to 

 charge. The tuskers are most likely to be found in the rear 

 guard of a herd, and the animals should not be approached in 

 cover unless they are feeding. A peculiar short, shrill trumpet 

 is the sign that the hunter has been discovered ; the herd 

 stands perfectly still for some minutes and then closes up and 

 moves rapidly off; or, if the elephant that perceives danger 

 discovers that it is very near, it retires quickly without a sound, 

 followed by the rest, so that the hunter may find the whole 

 herd gone before he is aware that he has even been perceived. 



