HUNTING THE ELEPHANT 



given a great deal had I had a horse. Horses are 

 unfortunately not available in the African steppe. 

 Leaving three men behind to secure the well -devel- 

 oped horns of the old animal and to bring them to 

 camp, I continued the interrupted hunt of the ele- 

 phants. At four o'clock in the afternoon I became 

 convinced that it was quite hopeless to follow the 

 quickly moving animals, who, no doubt, were bound 

 for the nearest drinking - place. We therefore rested. 

 My men were discouraged and pining for the comforts 

 of the camp. I decided, however, to make one more 

 attempt to reach the elephants. The blacks, who were 

 somewhat rested, responded cheerfully, and again we 

 tramped over the steppe. At last my main guide and 

 I noticed in the far distance, over a mile and a half 

 away, on the hilly ground before us, two dark masses 

 of elephants. In the clear atmosphere of the tropics 

 the distant animals appeared remarkably near and dis- 

 tinct. 



I left most of my party behind, and approached the 

 animals as fast as I could, taking with me but five men. . 

 The steppe was almost bare; here and there only small 

 groves of locust - trees relieved the monotony of the 

 landscape. Yet we managed to creep up to the herd 

 within six hundred feet, and I succeeded in taking a 

 few snap-shots. Through my field -glass I saw that the 

 herd was separated, according to sex, into two parts. 

 Three young ones were with their mothers. They all 



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