HUNTING THE ELEPHANT 



and turned to the left. I quickly loaded my rifle with 

 a more appropriate cartridge and followed him in his 

 hasty retreat, i fired two shots and wounded him so 

 that he slackened his pace. He halted under some 

 locust-trees, made an attempt to attack me, but was 

 killed by two more shots. This bull had apparently 

 strayed away from a small herd which had — an unusual 

 act for the time of the year — come down from the higher 

 plateau to the dry steppe, part of which, however, was 

 covered by green grass in consequence of a recent rain- 

 storm. 



At another time I had, for weeks, been looking for 

 elephants on the northeast side of the Ngaptuk moun- 

 tain. I had purposely refrained from shooting game 

 or liirds so as not to 'scare away the elephants, which 

 mieht be concealed in some of the numerous ravines 

 and glens of the mountains. One day I could not re- 

 sist the teniptation and shot a rare thrush. The report 

 of my gun echoed and re-echoed from mountain and 

 dale, and was answered in the deep valley below me 

 by the warning trumpet sound of an elephant. The 

 next day I went in the direction from which the sound 

 had come, and was fortunate enough to locate the herd. 

 The wind was favoral:)le and I managed to approach 

 within a few paces of two l:)ulls. They stood perfectly 

 still, and I waited almost an hour for the animals to 

 change their position. I killed one, hitting him be- 

 tween ear and eye, and the other by two shots aimed 



III 



