76 BIG GAME SHOOTING 
way, and a great hand at combination. He wishes to feed on 
the top of a tree, finds it too strong for him alone, calls on a 
friend or two, and, with an all-together swing, they bring it to’ 
the ground. When at bay, he has a fancy for pushing down a 
tree on your head and charging through the branches. His 
friend tumbles into a pitfall—by the way, males very seldom 
do, for, fearing no other animal, they carry their trunks down ; 
the sensitiveness of that organ warns them of the danger, and 
they will walk securely amongst a nest of these traps and. 
neatly uncover them, throwing the reeds and grass into the 
air with scorn. The cows, however, are frequently taken, 
for, anxious about their calyes—which are often attacked 
by lions—they carry their trunks in the air, feeling for a 
chance scent of the enemy. The Kafirs sometimes lie in 
wait by the water near to which the pits are dug, and after 
the elephants or other game have drunk, raise a shout, and 
in the hurry of the retreat the living graves reap their harvest. 
These pitfalls are 10 feet long by about 9 deep and 4 wide 
at the top, narrowing as they deepen, so that a large beast 
gets jammed in them; they are made larger specially for 
elephants, and are most skilfully covered with reeds, grass, 
and a few handfuls of sand. I have ridden into them 
horse and all, and I have walked into them ; in the first in- 
stance, I shook my feet out of the stirrups in time to prevent 
my legs being crushed, and managed to scramble out from the 
horse’s back. In the second, walking on the high bank of the 
‘Zouga River, I was rating one of my drivers in the river-bed 
below for punishing his oxen, when I suddenly felt the 
ground give way beneath me, and amidst a shower of dust and 
broken reeds thought I could catch the sound of laughter from 
the waggon—let us hope I was mistaken. Luckily this one 
had no stake at the bottom, as many have. But we have left 
our elephant in the trap too long ; let us return tohim. His 
friends at first run off panic-stricken, but often come back 
affected by his piteous calls for help ; and, swinging their 
heavy forefeet, strike the sandy soil with the front part, 
