jungles of
Bengal, and knew all the peculiarities of the grand quadruped. Such
footmarks as were now under his eyes could not have been made by a mere
visionary animal, but only by a real elephant in the flesh.

"And one of the biggest kind," asserted the shikaree, now speaking in
full confidence, and declaring, at the same time, that he could tell its
height to an inch.

"How can you do that?" asked Caspar, in some surprise.

"Me berra easy tell, young sahib," replied Ossaroo; "only need takee
size ob de rogue's foot. Dis way, sahibs."

Saying this, the shikaree drew forth from one of his pockets a piece of
string; and, choosing one of the tracks which had made the clearest
impression, he carefully applied the string around its outer edge. In
this way the circumference of the elephant's foot was obtained.

"Now, sahibs," said Ossaroo, holding the string between his fingers--
that portion of it which had been applied around the footprint--"_twice_
the length of dis reachee to the top of he shoulder; that how Ossaroo
know he biggee elephant."

The circumference of the foot thus measured being nearly six feet, it
would follow, from the rule laid down by the shikaree, that the elephant
in question was nearly twelve feet high; and this Karl knew to be one of
the largest. Nor did Karl question the correctness of the deduction:
for he had often heard, from hunters whose word was not to be doubted,
that the height of an elephant is exactly twice the circumference of his
foot.

Ossaroo, having now yielded up his belief--that the elephant was one of
his gods in disguise--declared with full confidence that the animal was
a _rogue_. Karl needed no explanation of what was meant by this. He
knew that the rogue elephant is an old male, who, for some reason or
other--perhaps for bad behaviour--has had the cold shoulder given him by
the rest of the herd, and from whose association he has been driven
away. Thus _cut_ by his former acquaintances, he is compelled to lead a
solitary life--the consequence of which is, that he becomes exceedingly
spiteful and morose in his disposition, and will not only attack any
other animal that may chance to cross his path, but will even seek them
out, as if for the mere purpose of indulging in a spirit of revenge!
There are many such in the jungles of India, as well as in Africa; and,
since man himself is not excepted from this universal hostility, a rogue
elephant is regarded as an excee