Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-10-12
CHARGED BY ANGRY ELEPHANT


A Hunters Adventure With a Wound
ed Paehyderm In a Malayan Forest.
I took q steady aim at the last ver-
zebra at the nape of its neck, expect
ing the bullet to smash its backbone
and perhaps to rake into its brain,
writes G. Maxwell in the Temple Bar.
describing an elephant hunt in the
Malay peninsula; fired and all was
still.
| Peering under the smoke Of my ten
bore, I saw the animal lying motion
less. waited few seconds, and then
looked around towards the two Malays.
The week before shooting in the
Kuantan valley, had killed a fine
tusker elephant with a single bullet In
the brain. This made two consecutive
elephants with two consecutive bull
let's, and the second Of them was this
famous Blat elephant. Trying to con-
ceal my emotion. I beckoned to. the
men to come up, saying that the ami
NAL was dead. But dead had barely
crossed my lips when there was a
rending Of the rattans, and before /
could move the elephant was charging
straight at me.
A second before 1t had been lying on
the ground with all four feet stretched
out, and with, believed, bullet in its
brain. An elephant cannot spring to
his feet, and tame animal generally
takes some time to rise. The sudden
ness Of this charge may, therefore, ap-
pear exaggerated. can only say that
was standing within a few yards Of
the animal and was not aware Of any
interval Of time between its lying ST.
lent on the ground and its charging
me. I saw the green rattans tearing
asunder to right and to left away from
an enormous brown head trunk
tightly coiled up and pair Of huge
cleaning tusks. It was all high up in
the air. and right above me-imminent
as a wave that curls before It breaks.
With my second barrel fired into the
centre Of the enormous brown chest,
the head being 50 high and 80 close
there 1t was covered by the tightly
coiled trunk, and then with an empty
rife turned and ran down the track
up which we had come. The elephant
was only few yards behind me. and
ran for life.
Before I had gone more than fifteen
or twenty yards tripped and fell
heavily to the ground, my rifle being
flung from my hand Death seemed
certain and could only hope that It
would be painless. But to my intense
surprise the elephant had not follow
ed me. Looking over my shoulder !
saw 1t standing under the great dead
tree from underneath which had fired
both shots. I picked myself UP and,
not daring to wait to get my rifle,
which had been thrown into thicket
by my fall. raced down the path again
and hid behind the first convenient
tree. From this point of comparative
safety saw the elephant still stand
Ing under the dead tree. 1t was fumb-
ling dizzily with its trunk In the heavy
smoke of the black powder-fumbling
to find me. The blood was pouring
from the wound in it's chest in great
throbbing jets, and the bright green
underground was drenched with heavy
red.
After a few seconds the great brute
began to scream with rage and pain.
How It screamed! AS the numbness
caused by the shock Of the first bull
let wore off the pain of the wound and
Of the second bullet in its chest drove
1t to frenzied madness. 1t trampled
over the ground, which was already
besmeared with its blood, and with
trunk outstretched and ears thrust
forward turned in every direction for
its assailant.
After a time-it may have been only
few minutes, but II seemed like
hours--weakened by the loss Of blood
and convinced perhaps Of the futility
Of its search; 1t moved slowly away.
Long afterward 1t was found dead.