The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1877-09-01
MY Il


AAoo AlNAkslIb 1AAp Ill A1LICd, L udo OOe
tramping about for days through the h
q sands, which seemed to moisten as
walked and at last, wearied out, "
camped down for the night close to
! pool. I was in the land of dreams, an
? back in England, when I was awakene
, by n of my Kaffirs, and, sitting VI
J there was about the strangest noise {
3 Wallowing, shouting and trumpeting
ever heard. 1t was for all the world &
if some great beasts were playing wit
the water, and kept saying "Pomp"
"Elephats, my boy whispered.
And we lay listening, | without tn
slightest desire to go and attack them i
the dark; and at last, all becoming silent
I dropped again into that sound slee1
enjoyed by the tired man.
The next morning, on seeking tn
nearest pool, the first glance convinceC
us that our ears had not played us falls
in the night, for there, deeply impressed
in the soft mud, lay the giant footprint
of seven splendid bulls.
A careful aurvey round about sool
showed US that they had come down thu
valley to the right, and, after drinking
and splashing about in all the pools, had
gone out into the low hills on the left
so, putting my best spooring Kafir or
the track, we lost no time in starting il
pursuit.
The troop, as well as COLD be judged:
consisted of about ten or twelve bulls,
among them three or four regular old
t~easers, with footprints nearly two feet
in diameter.
After following their spoor for about a
couple of hours across a sort of easy
country, it led us to some much higher
and more rugged hills, and here they had
ceased to iced and taken to an old path,
stepping it out at a brisk pace i'll single
file.
After following the spoor for about
another hour along this path, it once
more left it and struck off again in the
old direction across the hills, and, just
here getting among a lot of yesterdays
tracks, we had great difficulty in follow
ing it but at length my boy, with the
sagacity and perseverance of a hound,
ferreted it out, and away we went again.
About eleven o'clock we got into a
patch of very thick, scrubby (what the
Kaffirs call "Idoro" bush), in a deep
kloof between the hills, and here we went
along with great care and caution, ex-
pecting every instant to see the elephants,
as I made sure they would not pass a
place 50 favorable for their midday siesta
however, they went clean out OF here,
and up the steep hill on the other side.
Arrived at the top, we looked down upon
a large kloof, inclosed ON all sides with
steep hills, and covered with dense bush,
thicker a great deal than we had just
come through; and as I looked | felt
my friends were sleeping not many
hundred yards off.
At this instant, glancing to the right,
] perceived elephants coming down tie
side of a hill a little on ahead (my boy
afterward claimed to have headed these,
and turned them back toward the valley);
I ran to intercept them.
I was just in time, and as they passed
in front of me, not any more than forty
yards distance, in single file, I gave the
last one (he having the finest ivory a
shot in the middle of the shoulder, but a
few inches too high however, it slack.
ened his speed considerably, and he left
the Others. Quickly reloading, l fol-
and getting to where the brush
was a little more open, shouted behind
"Hi, there! woho, old mani" and
fatal curiosity, or, perhaps, awish for ven
geance, inducing him to turn, I planted
another four-ounce ball in his chest. He
wheeled around Immediately, but
strength failed him, only walked a few
stood under a tree, and after re-
another bullet square on the
shoulder, gave a fierce shake Of the head,
making his huge ears flap again, and
slowly down, with his hind legs
doubled out, surrendered up his tough
old spirit, looking, for all the world
dead, like a tame elephant when
kneeling for people to ascend the how
dab.