42 ADVENTURES OF AN ELEPHANT HUNTER ch. iv 
to which the native mind is prone, they had 
come to the conclusion that Kom-Kom was 
the reincarnation of one of their famous chiefs, 
who in the days gone by had been murdered 
by the Wangoni. Now his restless spirit had 
taken up its abode in the form of an elephant 
and was avenging the wrongs he had suffered 
during his existence in human shape. Further¬ 
more, they told me that during the day Kom 
Kom roamed where man seldom trespassed, 
deep in the heart of the Lerongie jungle and, 
at night, came forth to plunder their crops and 
instil terror into their hearts. Even the women 
were afraid to go and draw water from the 
stream that flowed near their huts, and so 
greatly had the reputation of Kom-Kom grown 
that the inhabitants of Nagoromenia’s Kraal, 
which lay some thirty miles from Iperie’s village, 
lived in perpetual dread of him. 
Apart from the question of doing a public 
service, I was in quest of ivory, and it was 
immaterial to me whether that ivory was Kom- 
Kom’s or not, so, informing the native messengers 
that I should make an effort to rid them of the 
inconsiderate spirit of their former chief, I dismissed 
them. 
Next day, as soon as it was light, we set out for 
Nagoromenia's Kraal. As we tramped through 
