36 ADVENTURES OF AN ELEPHANT HUNTER ch. 
control my breath and steady my hand, pressed 
the trigger. The bullet struck him right between 
the eyes, bringing him to his knees as if poleaxed, 
and as he struggled gamely to rise, I finished 
him with another shot. 
On my men arriving and helping me up to 
THE DEAD ELEPHANT. 
the elephant to make my usual examination of 
the prize, I was astonished to find that his tail 
was absolutely devoid of hair. Sometimes, in old 
elephants, the tails are found greatly denuded of 
hair, only the stumps of the long, whalebone-like 
bristles remaining as evidence of youthful, hir¬ 
sute glory, but, in the specimen of which I 
speak, no hairs have ever developed and the 
