324 WILD SPORTS OF BURMA AND ASSAM 



one side to see the effects of my shot. The result was start- 

 ling in the extreme, and I was astonished to see with what 

 rapidity the huge animal had regained its legs and was bear- 

 ing straight down upon us with curled-up trunk and head 

 held high in the air. This was too much for our friend from 

 Tsaizingon, he disappeared. A shot from the Lec-Metford 

 and another from the 8-bore was immediately fired, neither 

 of which seemed to have any effect, as, sweeping past within 

 a few feet of us, the elephant rushed down the steep almost 

 inaccessible banks of a stream strewn with logs, fallen trees, 

 and blocked with dense jungle, ascending the other side, and 

 making off as if untouched. I now saw to my sorr.ow, for the 

 first time, that the elephant was a tuskless male. 



After severely rating the thugyi and informing him that he 

 was not fit to hold an appointment under Government, we 

 followed on, hoping that the animal would not be able to go 

 very far. We had not gone two miles before we came up 

 with it leaning against the trunk of a large teak tree, looking 

 very sick. It was a magnificent beast, standing, as I found 

 from a careful measurement taken on the spot with a metallic 

 tape, 10 feet 4 inches between uprights. 



All the differences pointed out by Colonel Pollok, already 

 referred to by me, between " mucknas " and tuskers were now 

 quite apparent. The poor beast, on seeing us approach, 

 turned round and faced us as if to charge, but eventually 

 collapsed slowly on to its knees after a preliminary lurch or 

 two, when it died uttering low rumbling sounds and looking, 

 with its wide-open bright and mischievous eyes, still most 

 life-like. The rain about this time came down in torrents, 

 and as it was now getting late and we had covered some 

 twenty miles of country, too far to be able that night to return 

 to camp, we decided to head for the nearest village, Pauktabin, 

 distant about three miles, from whence I intended sending 

 out villagers next day to bring in the two fore-feet and rudi- 

 mentary tusks of the muckna, which were in themselves 

 curiosities. About 100 villagers surrounded the dead 

 carcase of the elephant next day like so many vultures, 

 and soon cut up and carried away all the meat, leaving 

 nothing but bones. This elephant I afterwards ascertained 



