ing out of the snare. He then wheeled round and charged straight at
King Jambai, who stood close to us, with incredible fury. The beast, as
it came on with the bristling spears all over it, the blood spirting
from its innumerable wounds, and trumpeting shrill with rage, seemed to
me like some huge unearthly phantom. It was with difficulty I could
believe the whole scene other than a hideous dream. Jambai launched his
javelin into the animal's chest, and then turned and fled. The other
natives also darted and scattered hither and thither, so that the
elephant could not make up its mind on which of its enemies to wreak its
vengeance. We, too, turned and took to our heels at once with right
good will. All at once I heard Jack utter a wild shout or yell, very
unlike to anything I ever heard from him before. I looked back, and saw
that his foot had got entangled in a thorny shrub, and that the elephant
was making at him.

To this day I have never been able to account for the remarkable
condition of mind and body that ensued on this occasion. Instead of
being paralysed as I had been when Peterkin was in imminent danger, all
sensation of fear or hesitancy seemed to vanish on thine instant. I
felt my nerves and muscles strung, as it were, and rendered firm as a
rock, and with calm deliberation, yet with the utmost rapidity of which
I was capable, I turned round, sprang between Jack and the enraged
beast, and presented my piece at his head.

"Right in the centre of his forehead," gasped Jack, as he endeavoured to
wrench his foot from the entanglement.

At that moment I observed Peterkin leap to my side; the next instant the
report of both our guns rang through the woods; the elephant bounded
completely over Jack, as Peterkin and I leaped to either side to let it
pass, and fell to the ground with such violence that a tree about six
inches thick, against which it struck, went down before it like a willow
wand.

We immediately assisted Jack to extricate himself; but we had no time to
congratulate ourselves on our narrow escape, for mingled shouts and
yells from the men in the bushes ahead apprised us that some new danger
menaced them in that direction.

Reloading as fast as we could, we hastened forward, and soon gained the
new scene of battle. Here stood the other elephant, trying to break
down a small tree up which King Jambai had climbed, partly for safety
and partly in order to dart a javelin down on the brute a