elephants. They soon
returned, and reported the fresh tracks of a herd, and begged me to lose
no time in accompanying them, as the elephants might retreat to a great
distance. There was no need for this advice. In a few minutes my horse
Tetel was saddled, and my six Tokrooris and Bacheet, with spare rifles,
were in attendance. Bacheet, who had so ingloriously failed in his
first essay at Wat el Negur, had been so laughed at by the girls of the
village for his want of pluck that he had declared himself ready to
face the devil rather than the ridicule of the fair sex; and, to do him
justice, he subsequently became a first-rate lad in moments of danger.

The aggageers were quickly mounted. It was a sight most grateful to a
sportsman to witness the start of these superb hunters, who with the
sabres slung from the saddle-bow, as though upon an every-day occasion,
now left the camp with these simple weapons, to meet the mightiest
animal of creation in hand-to-hand conflict. The horses' hoofs clattered
as we descended the shingly beach, and forded the river shoulder-deep,
through the rapid current, while those on foot clung to the manes of the
horses and to the stirrup-leathers to steady themselves over the loose
stones beneath.

Tracking was very difficult. As there was a total absence of rain, it
was next to impossible to distinguish the tracks of two days' date from
those most recent upon the hard and parched soil. The only positive clew
was the fresh dung of the elephants, and this being deposited at long
intervals rendered the search extremely tedious. The greater part of the
day passed in useless toil, and, after fording the river backward and
forward several times, we at length arrived at a large area of sand in
the bend of the stream, that was evidently overflowed when the river was
full. This surface of many acres was backed by a forest of large trees.
Upon arrival at this spot the aggageers, who appeared to know every inch
of the country, declared that, unless the elephants had gone far away,
they must be close at hand, within the forest. We were speculating
upon the direction of the wind, when we were surprised by the sudden
trumpeting of an elephant, that proceeded from the forest already
declared to be the covert of the herd. In a few minutes later a fine
bull elephant marched majestically from the jungle upon the large area
of sand, and proudly stalked direct toward the river.

At that time we were stationed un