A TALE OF THREE ELEPHANTS. 2O$ 



they settled down to a hearty dinner upon boiled fern 

 tops. 



But the natives of Borneo are not equal to the Caffres 

 in this respect. A CafFre can eat more when he gets the 

 opportunity, and can go longer without food when it is 

 necessary, than any man I have ever seen. 



I have given instances of successful days of hunting. 

 Sometimes, however, one makes a mess of it as I am 

 about to relate. 



I had hunted all day until about three in the after- 

 noon without success, and was thinking of returning 

 home when we struck the spoor of a particularly fine 

 bull elephant. We followed up, and in about half an 

 hour the spoor freshened to such an extent that we knew 

 he could not be far in front of us. 



A tree had been blown down lately, and its leaves were 

 yet green and loaded with berries. Just as we were 

 passing this tree (it was only about twenty yards to our 

 left) my attention was attracted to a grating noise 

 proceeding from amongst the boughs of the fallen tree ; 

 and on looking to my left I started, for there was a huge 

 bull elephant feeding upon the said tree. I could not 

 see his head, for it was buried amongst the boughs and 

 leaves of the tree, but the grating noise was produced by 

 the motion of his jaws, and I could hear the flapping of 

 his ears as he tossed his head about in the act of feeding. 



I beckoned to my men to make themselves scarce,, 

 and walked up on tiptoe. It was very awkward. I 

 wished to kill him with a single shot, but as his head 

 was invisible I did not know how to manage it. 



A shot from a large-bored gun planted behind the 

 shoulder will do the business, but it does not drop him at 

 once. If I shot him behind the shoulder, it might eventu- 



