MONKEYS, BEARS, AND ELEPHANTS. 147 



■was even greatei' than for the same offense in the Coimbatore Dis- 

 trict, but we wanted an elephant terribly. We started our game 

 in our own forest, and being thoroughly excited by the chase, we 

 determined to kill an elephant out of that herd if possible, and risk 

 the consequences. 



We gained the top of the mountain at last, and then Arndee de- 

 clared that the elephants were a great way off yet, it was a long 

 way back to camp, and we had better abandon the chase. I said 

 "No," very decidedly. The men started on, grumbling as they 

 went, and in less than ten minutes more we sighted the herd ! 

 There was a very fine tusker in it, but he was feeding in a bit of 

 open forest, and it was impossible to stalk him successfully. 



Before we were aware of it, Arndee and I had walked into dan- 

 gerous proximity to a group which included three female ele- 

 phants and two calves. Out of a thick patch of underbrush, forty 

 yards from us, there came up the end of a huge trunk with the tip 

 bent in our direction. Then another trunk came up, and sniffed the 

 air suspiciously, first in one direction and then another. Presently a 

 movement was made in our direction, and two of the elephants 

 emerged from the brush and stoj)ped short, scenting the air in 

 every direction. Arndee and I shrunk our bodies up as small as 

 jDOSsible and cowered closely behind the foot of a tree, while I 

 cocked both barrels of my gun and made ready to meet a charge. 



For fully four minutes — a very long time under such circum- 

 stances — those two elephants stood there within twenty-five paces 

 of us, listening intently, watching every object, and scenting the 

 air very susi^iciously, actually trying to discover where we were. 

 They knew we were somewhere near them, and they deliberately 

 searched for us to attack us. Every moment we expected to be 

 discovered and charged by both the elephants, which would have 

 been disagreeable, if not fatal. At last, one of the pair started 

 straight in the direction of the other men, who had climbed trees, 

 fifty yards off. When the elephants started for them, Arndee made 

 a frantic signal with his arm, and the Mulcers went on up like 

 squirrels. The old scout walked directly under them, then turned 

 and came back, and during this diversion Ai'ndee and I lost no 

 time in beating a safe retreat. In returning, he came directly to 

 the spot where we had been concealed, paused, and stood motion- 

 less as a statue for about two minutes, then quickly but noise- 

 lessly vanished in the thicket, and all was silent. 



We moved up again and waited to see what the herd was going to 



