SECOND EXPEDITION TO EAST AFRICA 181 



killed the lion. The assegai was bent, but was 

 not broken. 



On another occasion Mr. Archer was charged 

 by a tusker elephant, which he had wounded. 

 He planted two bullets in the animal's chest 

 from a '450 cordite rifle, but failed to turn him, 

 and the situation was saved by a Sudanese 

 orderly. When the elephant charged the orderly 

 deliberately knelt down and took a steady shot 

 at his forehead with his Martini rifle, and this 

 shot turned him. Unfortunately I cannot re- 

 member whether the elephant was eventually 

 bagged or not. The story was told in the course 

 of a discussion as to the relative merits of the 

 head shot or the heart shot for an elephant. 

 Many sportsmen, who do not know the meaning 

 of fear and intend to bag their elephant at any 

 cost, appear to prefer the heart shot ; but, as was 

 shown on this occasion, a well-placed head shot 

 will turn a charging elephant when a body shot 

 will not do so. 



We crossed the Guaso Nyiro to the northern 

 or left bank, and from the river-crossing we 

 marched into the unknown in the heart of 

 Equatorial Africa. Our porters, with their rations 

 of beans to eat, and the prospect of some good 

 gorges of meat, marched along, making light 

 of their loads, and came into camp blowing horns, 

 after marches of about 14 miles in length. A 

 porter's load, as limited by regulation, is 60 lbs. ; 

 but only the boxes of stores weighed as much as 

 this, and these were carried by the best porters. 

 The tents were rapidly pitched, and then the 

 porters dispersed to bathe or to fish or to hunt 



