The Elephant. 159 



ELEPHANT (Elephas africanus]. 



NATIVE NAMES. 

 Chinyanja - - Njobvu. | Chingoni - - Nkhlovu. 



Approximate weight, $ I3,ooolb. 



Good average tusk, $ ... 4olb. 



Good average length, $ 66in. 



This grand animal is still very plentiful in the countries 

 I write of, although many of the largest tuskers have been 

 thinned out within the last ten years. It is certainly 

 unfortunate for the elephant that ivory is such a valuable 

 substance, as otherwise his body is of little use, except in 

 supplying an abundance of meat, which the natives are 

 very fond of, as they believe eating it gives them strength. 

 The best ivory comes from this country, it is known in 

 the market as Mozambique quality, and it is seldom that 

 ivory of bad quality is shot here. 



The best tusks are called " soft " ivory, and the inferior 

 ones " hard " ivory. The former brings up to 155. per 

 pound in the European markets for bull tusks, and the 

 ivory of the cows is much more valuable, as it sometimes 

 fetches i per pound. 



The most remarkable features about the elephant are 

 his enormous strength and his powers in covering long 

 distances. He is certainly " The King of Beasts/' and one 

 stamp of his mighty foot would flatten out a lion as a man 

 can a beetle which he treads on. 



Elephants in their natural haunts cover an immense 

 extent of country in their daily wanderings, and they are 

 always at it, except when they may find a good feeding 

 ground, such as a large maize garden, when they will 

 spend perhaps two weeks hanging around. In the rainy 

 season they do not travel so much, as water and feed are 

 plentiful, and this is a trait unlike most animals, which 

 scatter and disperse in the rains. 



The largest bulls often wander about singly or with a 

 comrade or two, and such friends may be quite small 



