6 AN ELEPHANT HUNT IN CEYLON 



in front of such an enormous brute, the 



matter assumes a very different aspect. Un- 

 fortunately, my Enghsh double-barrelled gun 

 at that time inspired me with deep respect 

 owing to its recoil, and I had given it to 



Finckenstein, while I 

 carried my '306. 



I knelt down in the 

 marsh and took hold of 

 a small alder or some- 

 thing of that kind. I 

 aimed at the point 

 above the trunk and 

 must admit that I fin- 

 gered the trigger with 

 considerable timidity. 

 What happened then 

 I cannot possibly describe. The report of the 

 shot was mixed up with a kind of earth- and 

 sea-quake, and a fearsome trumpeting from 

 the suddenly awakened old gentleman. He 

 fairly sprang into the air. 



I could see the place where I had hit him 

 quite well — just a little too high. 



