ie--
Elephant tombs* that the oldest knew,--
Old as the trees when the prime is past,
Lords unchallenged of vale and plain,
Grazing aloof and alone at last
To lie where the oldest had always lain.
So we sing of it:

-----------------------------
* The legendary place that every Ivory hunter hopes some day to stumble
on, where elephants are said to have gone away to die of old age, and
where there should therefore be almost unimaginable wealth of ivory.
The legend, itself as old as African speech, is probably due to the
rarity of remains of elephants that have died a natural death.
------------------------------

(All together, swinging from side to side in time, and tossing trunks.)

'Twas we who lonely echoes woke
To copy the crash of the trees we broke!
Goad, nor whip, nor wheel, nor yoke
Shall govern the strength of the Ivory Folk!

Still we are monarchs! Our strength and weight
Can flatten the huts of the frightened men!
But the glory of smashing is lost of late,
We raid less eagerly now than then,
For pits are staked, and the traps are blind,
The guns be many, the men be more;
We fidget with pickets before and behind,
Who snoozed in the noonday heat of yore.
Yet, hear us sing:

(All together, ears up and trunks extended.)

'Twas we who lonely echoes woke
To copy the crash of the trees we broke!
Goad, nor whip, nor wheel, nor yoke
Have lessened the rage of the Ivory Folk!

Still we are monarchs of field and stream!
None is as strong or as heavy as we!
We scent--we swerve--we come--we scream--
And the men are as mud 'neath tusk and knee!
But we go no more to the Place to die,
For the blacks head off and the guns pursue;
Bleaching our scattered rib-bones lie,
And men be many, and we be few.
Nevertheless:

(All together, trunks up-thrown, ears extended, and stamping in slow
time with the fore-feet.)

'Twas we who lonely echoes woke
To copy the crash of the trees we broke!
Goad, nor whip, nor wheel, nor yoke
Shall humble the pride of the Ivory Folk!

We had laughed at Fred's suggestion that Schillingschen might have
ammunition cached away. Fred had sneered at my guess that the German
might ride donkey-back and not be so easily left behind. Now the
probability of both suggestions seemed