EFFICIENCY OF RIFLES 
263 
CH. X] 
it would have been practically impossible to traverse 
the thick and matted cover in which they had made 
their abode. 
We could not tell at what moment we might find 
ourselves face to face with some big beast at such close 
quarters as to insure a charge, and we moved in cautious 
silence, our rifles in our hands. Rhinoceros were 
especially plentiful, and we continually came across not 
only their tracks, but the dusty wallows in which they 
rolled, and where they came to deposit their dung. 
The fresh sign of elephant, however, distracted our 
attention from the lesser game, and we followed the 
big footprints eagerly, now losing the trail, now finding 
it again. At last, near a clump of big trees, we caught 
sight of three huge, dark bodies ahead of us. The wind 
was right, and we stole toward them, Kermit leading 
and I immediately behind. Through the tangled 
branches their shapes loomed in vague outline; but 
we saw that one had a pair of long tusks, and our 
gun-bearers unanimously pronounced it a big bull, with 
good ivory. A few more steps gave Kermit a chance 
at its head, at about sixty yards, and with a bullet from 
his *405 Winchester he floored the mighty beast. It 
rose, and we both fired in unison, bringing it down 
again ; but as we came up it struggled to get on its 
feet, roaring savagely, and once more we both fired 
together. This finished it. We were disappointed at 
finding that it was not a bull; but it was a large cow, 
with tusks over five feet long—a very unusual length 
for a cow—one weighing twenty-five and the other 
twenty-two pounds. 
Our experience had convinced us that both the 
Winchester *405 and the Springfield *300 would do 
