30 ADVENTURES IN SOUTH AFRICA. 



a gigantic nwana-tree, whose diameter was not less than 

 ten feet, I ran up within twenty yards, and gave it him 

 sharp right and left behind the shoulder. These two 

 shots wound up the proceeding; on receiving them, he 

 backed stern foremost into the cover, and then walked 

 slowly away. I had loaded my rifle, and was putting 

 on the caps, when I heard him fall over heavily ; but, 

 alas ! the sound was accompanied by a sharp crack, 

 which I too well knew denoted the destruction of one 

 of his lovely tusks ; and, on running forward, I found 

 him lying dead, with the tusk, which lay under, snap- 

 ped through the middle. 



I did not tarry long for an inspection of the elephant, 

 but, mounting my horse, at once set off to follow on 

 the spoor of the two old fellows which the ostrich hac^ 

 alarmed. Fortunately, I fell in with a party of na- 

 tives, who were on their way to the wagons with the 

 impedimenta, and, assisted by th^se, I had sanguii^e 

 hopes of shortly overtaking the noble quarry. We had 

 not gone far when two wild boars, with enormous tusks, 

 stood within thirty yards of me, but this was no time 

 to fire, and a little after a pair of white rhinoceroses 

 stood directly in our path. Casting my eyes to the 

 right, I beheld within a quarter of a mile of me a herd 

 of eight or ten cow elephants, with calves, peacefully 

 browsing on a sparely-wooded knoll. The spoor we 

 followed led due south, and the wind was as fair as it 

 could blow. We passed between the twin-looking, 

 abrupt, pyramidal hills, composed of huge disjointed 

 blocks of granite, which lay piled above each other in 

 grand confusion. To the summit of one of these I as- 

 cended with a native, but the forest in advance was so 

 impenetrable that we could see nothing of the game we 

 sought. Descending from the hillockj we resumed the 



