26 ADVENTURES OF AN ELEPHANT HUNTER CH. n 



the small bullet proved absolutely ineffectual, and 

 as he continued his onward career, I drove another 

 through his forehead, hoping to reach his brain 

 and drop him. Still he came on, with head 

 lowered, trunk extended, and blood streaming 

 down his face, and was within fifteen yards of 

 me, when I pulled back the bolt of my rifle to drive 

 another cartridge into the breech, only to discover, 

 to my horror, that the magazine was empty. In 

 the excitement of the hunt, I had completely 

 forgotten that I had already spent two of the five 

 cartridges on the last bull I had shot ! There 

 was no time, however, to curse my stupidity, so, 

 fully convinced that this, as far as I was concerned, 

 was the end of all things, I flung my rifle with 

 all my might into the elephant's face and sprang 

 to the left. At the same moment, I heard a 

 terrific report a few inches behind me, and turned 

 to find Simba standing with my heavy rifle in his 

 hands. Seeing my predicament, he had slipped 

 a cartridge into the weapon and fired it at the 

 animal in the very nick of time, the bullet passing 

 through the brute's trunk and crashing into his 

 mouth. Immediately swerving to the right, the 

 elephant collided with a tree, knocking it over 

 like a ninepin, and bursting through the branches, 

 as if they had been so much matchwood, continued 

 his wild career for another fifty yards before coming 



