this bird; there is a defiant and bold sort
of sound in his voice, heard so plainly, while he, thousands of feet
high, is almost, if not quite, invisible to the eye. Then coming down
suddenly, like a bolt from heaven, he pounces on some victim, whom he
clutches in his talons, and again soars aloft with a triumphant piercing
shriek. I obtained a fine fresh mullet, on one occasion, from one of
these feathered fishermen, whom I saw passing high overhead with his
prize. I sent a bullet whistling by his ear, which made him drop the
fish; it came down with a loud bang on the grass, and was still alive
when I picked it up. The osprey sailed round two or three times, as
though regretting the loss of such a good supper, and retraced his
aerial course for another victim.

CHAPTER TEN.

A SHOOTING-PARTY IN THE BUSH--ELEPHANT "SIGN"--THE ELEPHANTS HEARD--
CAUTION IN THE BUSH--APPROACH TO A WARY ELEPHANT--THE BETTER PART OF
VALOUR--TRACES OF THE WOUNDED ELEPHANT--SIC VOS NON VOBIS--ACUTE EAR OF
ELEPHANTS--THE ELEPHANTS' SIGNALS--MORE OF THEM--TREE'D--TEACHING THE
YOUNG IDEA--A FAMILY PICTURE--CHAFFED BY MONKEYS--A SHARP LOOKOUT--THE
DISADVANTAGE OF "CRACKERS"--A KAFFIR COWARD--CAPRICIOUS TEMPER OF
ELEPHANTS--ELEPHANTS IN THE "OPEN"--AN AWKWARD POSITION--SHARP PRACTICE.

On one of those beautiful mornings that are met with in or near the
tropics, a light westerly wind blowing, we started for some small pools
of water, distant about three miles from the town of D'Urban. The party
consisted of myself and two Kaffirs. I had on a small straw hat, well
browned, a dark blue flannel shirt, and a pair of the untanned leather
breeches of the country, denominated crackers. The "_veld-schoens_"
(field shoes), similar to those worn by the Dutch boers, are much better
than boots, as they are comfortable, soft, easy, and very silent. A
long dark green jacket, fitting loosely, and covered with pockets, was
my only other article of raiment. This was my favourite costume for the
bush, and one that I had found particularly difficult to be
distinguished when surrounded by the thick underwood and gloom of the
overhanging trees.

My two Kaffirs had each a powder-horn and bullet-pouch hung over their
shoulders, a necklace of charmed woods, and a small piece of buckskin of
about a foot in length by six inches broad, hung before and behind from
a thin strip of leather made fast round their waists. They were not
encumbered with more attire