XV RETURN TO LAKE RUDOLPH 355 



concurred in the desirability of such procedure. We then 

 retired to one of the chimney-like ant-heaps so common here, 

 standing a little back from the edge of the thick scrub, from the 

 shoulder of which we were able to observe the elephants, and 

 waited. As they had not been very much alarmed, and were 

 quite unconscious of our presence, I hoped they might move by 

 and by into a more favourable position. Soon they began to 

 move about, and I could see that one was considerably larger 

 than the other ; but both seemed, from the glimpses we got, to 

 have equally good, though not exceptionally massive, tusks. 



At last, after moving backwards and forwards several times 

 inside their retreat and exercising our patience a good deal, 

 they approached the limit of the brake on our side, and finally 

 came just outside and walked along skirting its edge. I 

 refrained from shooting while they moved, but got near and 

 followed along parallel with them, until, before they had gone 

 far, my patience was rewarded by a good chance. They stood ; 

 and I got up to the base of an ant-heap from whence 1 could get 

 a good clear shot. I gave the larger a bullet in the centre of the 

 right shoulder, and as they were making off I disabled his 

 mate with a shot into his hip, crippling him. The first ran 

 back to near their original position, and stood for a minute ; 

 but while we looked, it started to run full speed in our direc- 

 tion, and suddenly fell over, in mid career, rolling on to its 

 back with its feet kicking up into the air. Even then, as we 

 were congratulating each other, it got up again and stood. 

 What had happened was undoubtedly (I have seen the same 

 thing in other cases) that my shot had fractured the bone high 

 up ; so that, though it did not break at once, it caused the 

 limb to snap when it was running, thus bringing about its 

 sudden collapse. Both were now at my mercy, and I was not 

 long in giving them their quietus. The first probably needed 

 none, but the .303 bullet makes such a tiny wound that it takes 

 some time to kill a big bull, even though in a mortal spot. 

 They both had fine tusks, which I estimated to be a full load 



