ELEPHANT 201 



The shrill, carrying, but far from unmusical sound 

 was borne to us on the cool morning breeze from a distance 

 of quite a mile, and, strange to say, whether it was that 

 they recognized the note, or sniffed the wind tainted with the 

 smell they fear, our mules resolutely refused to be led or 

 driven one foot nearer. So we left them there, and went 

 forward on foot. 



Crowning the next swell of ridge, standing sleepily under 

 the shady trees, we saw some twenty great black backs ris- 

 ing above the yellow grass, and outlined against the sky. 

 Somehow, as they solemnly and slowly moved forward, for 

 they didn't stand still for long, ploughing their way through 

 the rank grass, yellow as ripe wheat, they reminded me of 

 nothing so much as the big black whales I had rowed up to, 

 on the lower St. Lawrence. The herd we now saw they 

 numbered about thirty moved out of all cover into the 

 wide prairie. But they were far from suspecting any dan- 

 ger, and had evidently no idea of travelling. They amused 

 themselves by tearing great wisps of the grass and throwing 

 them over their own and their friends' shoulders, and 

 spouting red dusty showers on each other. The finely 

 curving trunks often touched, and were slowly carried from 

 side to side, or round the little black totos that, almost 

 invisible, in the tall grass, moved along by their mothers' 

 sides. 



As I mounted the ridge the elephants had slowly left, 

 a wonderful prospect opened before me. On my left hand, 

 deep purple masses of virgin forest sloped down from 

 mighty Elgon to the wide yellow plain, now clothed with 

 golden .waving grass six feet high. Before me for mile 

 after mile those grass lands spread, bounded only on my 

 right hand by the other great woodlands that fell down- 

 ward from the mountain range to the east. Here at last 

 was the home of the elephant, and as I stood on its threshold 

 that glorious October morning, down from their inviolable 



