52 BEASTS AND MEN 
is flight; but the huntsmen surround. him, and no loophole of 
escape remains. Then with a loud trumpeting, which strikes 
terror into the breasts of the unfortunate ponies, he launches 
himself furiously against the nearest of his enemies. 
Now it is generally arranged that all the huntsmen should 
be mounted on dark-coloured ponies, with the exception of 
one, who rides a grey. The attention of the elephant, whose 
sight is not good, is attracted by the colour. Upon the grey 
pony, therefore, the mighty creature usually directs his attack. 
It is the business of the rider, at the first onset, to turn and 
flee. The elephant promptly gives chase ; and the flying hunts- 
man, ignoring the fact that the slightest slip means death, en- 
deavours to keep just out of reach, though near enough to 
hold the animal’s attention concentrated upon him. In the 
meantime his comrades follow the elephant from behind, and 
whoever reaches him first springs from his pony, and delivers 
a dexterous blow with his sword on the left hind leg of the 
animal, which cuts the Achilles tendon, and lames him on one 
side. As the elephant hastily turns to avenge himself upon 
this new enemy, it becomes the turn of the rider who was 
formerly being chased to stop, dismount, and with a similar 
blow on the right hind leg to lame the animal on the other 
side, so that he is totally disabled. If the blows have been 
delivered with sufficient skill and force, the arteries of the 
hind legs have been cut, and the elephant bleeds slowly but 
almost painlessly to death. If there is a gun at hand, his 
sufferings are more quickly terminated. Once he is dead, 
hours of arduous labour commence. The tusks are broken 
off; the hide also is removed, to be used for shields or sword- 
scabbards, or for harness for ploughs. The flesh is left for 
vultures and wild beasts, unless, indeed, there should happen 
to be in the vicinity a camp of the nomads. In that case the 
Carcase is appropriated by them. They cut the meat into 
strips and dry it in the sun (like the South American chargut) ; 
it is then put aside for use in the rainy season. 
For the European, armed with weapons both accurate 
