ught sight of the
camp, and saw the natives gathered round something which was, I had no
doubt, the elephant. I had feared that I should see the whole place in
confusion, the waggons upset, and above all the tent levelled. Thank
God, my dear boy, you are all safe! Now tell me all about it."

Dick related the circumstances, and Mr Harvey praised him highly for
the promptness, coolness, and courage with which he had acted. Then he
roundly abused the natives in their own language for their cowardly
conduct.

"Are you not ashamed of yourselves?" he asked; "what do you carry your
arms for, if you are afraid to use them? Here are sixteen men, all with
muskets, who run away in a panic, and leave one white lad to defend his
wounded friend alone."

The reproaches of Mr Harvey were mild by the side of the abuse which
the three hunters--for by this time Tony and Jumbo had reached the
camp--lavished upon their compatriots.

"What are you good for?" they asked scornfully; "you are fit only to be
slaves to the Dutch; the master had better hire women to march with him;
he ought to take your arms away, and to set you to spin."

Crestfallen as the natives were at their own cowardice, they were roused
by the abuse of the hunters, and a furious quarrel would have ensued,
had not Mr Harvey interposed his authority and smoothed matters down,
admitting that the attack of the enraged elephant was really terrifying,
and telling the natives that now they saw how well the white men could
fight, they would no doubt be ready to stand by them next time.

The hunters now proceeded to cut out the tusks of the elephant. When
they did so the cause of the animal's singular behaviour became
manifest; a ball had struck him just at the root of the tusk, and had
buried itself in one of the nerves there, no doubt causing excruciating
pain.

The tusks were grand ones, Mr Harvey saying that he had seldom seen a
finer pair. The news of the slaughter of three elephants drew together
a considerable number of natives, who were delighted to receive
permission to carry off as much meat as they chose. When the greater
portion of the flesh of the old bull had been removed, ten oxen were
harnessed to the remains of the carcass, and it was dragged to a
distance from camp, as Mr Harvey was desirous of remaining where he was
for some days longer on Tom's account, and the effluvia from the carcass
would in a very short time have rendered the camp uninhabita