plantations, and endeavouring to scare away the
elephants. These animals, with extreme cunning,
invaded the dhurra crops at different positions every
night, and retreated before morning to great distances
in the thick thorny jungles of the Settite.
Our arrival was welcomed with general enthusiasm,
as the Arabs were unprovided with fire-arms, and
the celebrated aggageers or sword-hunters were useless,
as the elephants only appeared at night, and were
far too cunning to' give them a chance. There was
a particular range of almost impenetrable thorny
covert in the neighbourhood of Geera, well known
as the asylum for these animals, to which they
retreated, after having satiated themselves by a few
hours’ feeding upon the crops of corn. I promised
to assist in protecting the plantations, although the
Arabs assured me that, in spite of our rifles, the
elephants would return every night.
Wishing to judge personally of the damage, I
rode up to the dhurra fields, and for a few hours I
examined the crops, through which I could ride with
ease, as the plants were arranged like hops.
Many acres were absolutely destroyed, as the
elephants had not only carefully stripped off the
heavy heads of corn, but had trampled down and
wilfully broken much more than they had consumed.
The Arabs knew nothing about guns, or their effect
upon elephants, and I felt quite sure that a few
nights with the heavy rifles would very soon scare
them from the fields.
I return to my journal.
“ November 7.—In the middle of last night I was
disturbed by the Arabs, who begged me to get up
and shoot the elephants that were already in the
plantations. This I refused to do, as I will not fire
a shot until they call in their watchers, and leave
the fields quiet. A few nights ago there was a
perfect uproar from a score of watchers, that prevented
the elephants from coming at the very time
that the people had induced me to pass the whole
night in the fields. I have arranged that the sheik
shall call in all these watchers, and that they shall
accompany me to-morrow night. I will then post
myself in the centre of the plantations, dividing the
men into many parties at all points, to return
quietly to me and report the position that the
elephants may have taken.
“This morning I purchased a kid for two piastres
(fivepence.) The sheik is exceedingly civil, and
insists upon sending me daily supplies of milk and
vegetables.
“This afternoon, accompanied by my wife, I accepted
an invitation to shoot a savage old bull hippopotamus
that had been sufficiently impertinent to chase
several of the natives. He lived in a deep and broad
portion of the river, about two miles distant. We
accordingly rode to the spot, and found the old
hippo at home. The river was about 250 yards
wide at this place, in an acute bend that had formed
a deep pool. In the centre of this was a mud