FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31  
32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   >>   >|  
to go." "But tell us," said Victor, another Boer, "about the lion above there. How did you see him? It was dark, was it not?" "Not very dark; the moon gave me light, and the creature whisked its tail just as it was going to spring, and so I saw it. I knew the place was one likely for a lion, and so had my eyes about me. It does not do to think too much when you walk in the veldt by night, or you may be taken unawares. I shot the lion between the eyes; and had he been any thing but a lion, he would have dropped dead; but a lion's life is too big to go all at once out of so small a hole as a bullet makes, and so he did not die for ten minutes." "Where are the other two bull elephants, Hans?" inquired Victor. "Did they go far, do you think, or would they stop?" "One is beside the Vlei near the Bavians Kloof; the other is in the thorn-bushes a mile from it." "But they won't stop there. Where think you they will be to-morrow?" "Where they are now," replied Hans, as he quietly brought from his pocket the ends of two more elephants' tails, and placed them beside those already on the ground. "You have not killed all four bull elephants, Hans?" said Bernhard, with a look of astonishment. "Will a bull elephant let you cut off the end of his tail when he is alive, Bernhard? You taught me first how to spoor an elephant, and you never told me that he would let you do that; so I killed mine first, and then cut his tail off afterwards. I shot all four bull elephants, and expended but thirteen bullets altogether on them. The teeth will weigh nearly five hundred pounds, and so I think I have a good excuse for coming late to supper. But now, good-night. We must be up early, and so sleep is good for a steady hand in the morning, and we shall want it, for game is near and plentiful. Good-night, and sleep well." CHAPTER TWO. FOLLOWING THE ELEPHANTS--CUTTING OUT THE TUSKS--HUNTING THE HERD OF ELEPHANTS. The sun's rays had scarcely commenced illuminating the eastern horizon, when the hunters were up, and making their preparations for the start. The plan of hunting which they had adopted, was to enter the country with waggons, oxen, and horses; to leave their waggons at a good outspanning-place where there was plenty of water and forage for the cattle; then to scour the country round and search for game, or spoor, which if found, the horses, oxen, and waggons were brought up, and the elephants hunted on
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31  
32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
elephants
 

waggons

 

brought

 

elephant

 

Victor

 
ELEPHANTS
 
killed
 

Bernhard

 
horses
 

country


steady

 

altogether

 
bullets
 

thirteen

 
expended
 

supper

 
coming
 
excuse
 

hundred

 

pounds


adopted

 

outspanning

 

hunting

 

hunters

 

making

 

preparations

 

plenty

 

search

 

hunted

 

forage


cattle

 
horizon
 

eastern

 

CHAPTER

 

FOLLOWING

 
plentiful
 

CUTTING

 
scarcely
 

commenced

 
illuminating

HUNTING
 

morning

 
dropped
 
unawares
 

spring

 

whisked

 
creature
 

pocket

 
morrow
 

replied