THE ELEPHANT 59 



louder and louder, and at length the grass opened 

 and an immense head pushed its way through. 

 This animal I took to be an old female, as the 

 ivory she carried, so far as it was visible, seemed 

 insignificant. It was diJSicult to judge sex by 

 her height, as one could not be sure how much leg 

 was embedded in the mud. She continued on her 

 way quite unconscious of danger, and was followed 

 by two other elephants, — one a young bull with 

 small but even tusks, and another whose ivory I 

 was unable to distinguish. At that moment my 

 hunter touched me excitedly on the knee, and 

 pointed to where the first of the herd had emerged 

 from the forest at the moment when a large bull 

 with fine ivory strolled leisurely out from the 

 trees. Even at the distance at which he displayed 

 himself I saw that he possessed fine massive tusks, 

 and I was consumed by an agony of doubt as to 

 how to get a shot at him. Almost in less time 

 than it takes to write the words he plunged into 

 the rushes and was lost to sight as he mingled 

 with the other members of the herd. It was quite 

 clear that the rearward elephants would follow 

 in the path of those now passing me, so, hastily 

 abandoning my position I took a rifle in each hand 

 and dashed off through the trees, if possible to head 

 them off. Arrived at a point near the end of the 

 marsh where the rushes dwindled to a height no 

 longer capable of affording cover to so large an 

 animal, I again concealed myself, and waited 

 their coming with an excitement almost painful 

 in its intensity. At length, after what to me 

 appeared a long wait, but was probably not more 



