Elephants Crossing a River 107 



we have rifles, which are injured by water ; and 

 then, African rivers swarm with voracious, silent 

 animals, very unengaging in appearance crocodiles. 

 It is wise, even, not to stand on the sandy 

 bank gazing at the sky, for you may be awakened 

 from your dream in a most disagreeable manner. 

 So, without lingering on this spot, we return and 

 decide on a means of crossing. There is no canoe ; 

 but some distance up-stream there is a ford by means 

 of which we crossed the day before, or the day before 

 that, in search of game. We proceed thither with- 

 out delay, as may well be understood, almost 

 running ; and at daybreak we reach the place where 

 the elephants are. A crashing, a crackling of broken 

 branches, tells us that they are still in the neighbour- 

 hood but lower down stream. In fact, we hear them 

 moving about noisily in the reeds which border the 

 river. As the wind is coming up the valley, we keep 

 ourselves always above stream and follow the ele- 

 phants for a time ; but they out-distance us, owing to 

 a large pool which obliges us to make a detour, and 

 when we arrive on the bank again we see them 

 in the middle of the river in the act of crossing it, 

 more than 150 yards from where we stand. It would 

 do no good, to fire ; besides, at a certain moment, the 

 elephants bury themselves completely with the ex- 

 ception of their trunks, and walk on the bed of the 

 river. The spectacle offered us by these trunks, similar 

 to large snakes whose heads alone emerge and turn 

 all in the same direction, is exceedingly curious. 

 Slowly the enormous animals walk, leaving a track in 



