no ELEPHANT-HUNTING IN EAST AFRICA chap. 
only a bit of him being visible and the necessity of making the 
best of such chances as it is possible to get in such thick cover, 
I was not able to put the bullet quite so close up behind the 
shoulder as it should be for an ideal shot For an elephant’s 
stomach seems to me to come farther forward towards his chest 
cavity than does that of most animals ; so that, if the shot is a 
trifle too far back, not only the heart but the lungs may be 
easily missed. However, I felt sure this was not so far aft as 
to allow the latter organs to escape. The grunt he gave also 
sounded confirmatory of my belief, and this was borne out by 
a little frothy blood on his retreating spoor. Feeling that he 
was sure to succumb soon to this wound, and being anxious to 
go after the second bull (both were huge beasts), I did not 
follow the spoor of the wounded one beyond a few steps, but, 
leaving him to be sought for afterwards, turned my attention to 
his mate. I may add that I did recover him all right, though 
not that day. He was found dead by my Ndorobo friends not 
far from my camp, straight towards which he had, curiously 
enough, made. He had only one tusk. Single tusks are 
commonly reported to be usually very large ; but this was no 
heavier than an ordinary large bull’s tooth (weighing 75 lbs.). 
I examined the skull, and found he never had a second, as 
there was no socket on the other side. 
But to come back to my day’s hunt. My Ndorobo lads 
were very lukewarm and disinclined to go on, their hearts being 
with the meat at their kraals ; and, finding the other bull had 
moved on, it was not without some persuasion that I got them 
to go on, though I was determined to follow, whether or no. 
However, they came, and I was glad of it, as they were useful, 
knowing the country intimately and being somewhat better 
spoorers and much quicker of hearing (an important qualifica¬ 
tion) than my own men. On catching the faintest sound of an 
elephant blowing, or a slight rustling of branches, they will at 
once fix the exact place whence the sound, very likely inaudible 
to other ears, proceeds. The second bull had gone over the 
