p here too."

Peter Pegg's mutterings and musing were brought to a sudden end by the
elephant, which seemed to be quite alone, coming close up to the
doorway, grunting and chuntering, as the young private called it, just
as if the animal were talking to itself, mingling its remarks with a low
squeal which might have meant either anger or satisfaction.

"I believe," thought Peter, "it's one of them that came to the
sham-fight, and I could almost fancy it's the chap I had a ride on. But
they are all alike, only one's bigger than another, and t'other's more
small. If he had got his toggery on with gold fringes and the big
bamboo clothes-basket full of cushions on his back, I should know him
directly. But he's what they call disguised in mud.--Here, I say,
don't! What you doing on?"

It was plain enough, for the great elephant had seized hold of a portion
of the woven, basket-like wall, which began to crack and give way as a
piece was torn out.

"I say, don't--don't be a fool! You'll wake the poor governor,"
whispered Peter, who began to tremble now with alarm.--"Oh, don't I wish
I could remember what the mahout said to him!--Here, I say, don't!--I
believe he's gone mad, and if he gets at us--Here, I say, what shall I
do?" And he backed away from where the light was beginning to show more
brightly through the woven wall, and took up his position as if to
protect his wounded officer. "If I had only got my rifle and bayonet, I
could keep him off, perhaps, with a good dig. Here, they have left me
my knife, though," he said joyously, as he drew it out and opened the
blade.

The possession of even this contemptible weapon seemed to give the poor
fellow some confidence, and he took three or four steps towards the hole
the huge beast was making, just as there was torn away another piece of
the elastic palm or bamboo of which the wall between the uprights was
formed.

And then the light opening was suddenly darkened.

"Blest if it ain't just like a great horse-leech such as we used to find
in the water-crease beds, only about ten million times as big;" and the
lad stood helplessly staring as he saw the monster's trunk thrust right
in through the wall and beginning to wave up and down and from side to
side, wondrously elastic, the nostrils at the end in this semi-darkness
looking like a pair of little wet eyes, between which the prehensile
part moved up and down like a tiny pug-nose.

_Sniff, snuff, snort_, and the