ELEPHANT HUNTING 193 



I jumped into and ran along it, impeded at every step 

 by low-lying branches. Seeing a large pool, I jumped 

 into it, rifle and all, and tried to sink. Alas ! when my 

 head was under water I was conscious that my feet were 

 above it, and vice versci. On the bank above I could 

 hear the elephants tramping and screaming, and some 

 distance away some shouting. Presently, at my very 

 feet the whole herd thundered across the khor. At the 

 time I would have given a good deal if the incident 

 had taken only as long in happening as it takes telling. 

 Did I run three hundred yards, or thirty ? Was I five 

 minutes in the water, or only as many seconds ? I will 

 never know. 



The incident taught me a few useful facts. It is 

 useless to attack elephant with a small-bore rifle unless 

 one is a crack shot. The heart is so big that, unless 

 one severs the great arteries at the top, the wounded 

 animal may go miles before succumbing. It is gener- 

 ally fatal to get into a watercourse. If the elephant 

 get one's wind, he has one like a rat in a trap. The 

 great elephant hunters, the Mandalla, tell me that they 

 will never tackle even a sorely wounded elephant in a 

 khor. From them I also heard that when chased one 

 should shout loudly. The intelligence of the pursuer 

 leads him to look for the companion to whom one 

 shouts. Hence he probably overruns one's trail. 

 Shouts like monkeys' " hough ! " are also useful, as 

 elephants are terrified of them. Monkeys give them 

 a bad time, especially when they are young, chase 

 and pinch them, jump on their backs and pull out 

 their hair. 



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