AN ELEPHANT HUNT.
After a few days the Fans began to get accustomed to me, and I to them;
and we were the best friends in the world.
They are great hunters. One day a woman returning from the plantations
brought news, that she had seen elephants; and that one of the plantain
fields had been entirely destroyed by them. This was an event of common
occurrence in the country; for the elephants are not very particular,
and whatever they like they take; not caring a bit how much hunger they
may occasion among the poor natives.
When the news arrived, a wild shout of joy spread among the villagers.
The grim faces of the Fans smiled; and in doing so, showed their ugly
filed teeth. "We are going to kill elephants," they all shouted. "We
are going to have plenty of meat to eat," shrieked the women.
So in the evening a war-dance took place; a war-dance of cannibals! It
was the wildest scene I ever saw. It was pitch-dark; and the torches
threw a dim light around us, and showed the fantastic forms of these
wild men. Really it was a wild scene. They were all armed as if they
were going to war. How they gesticulated! What contortions they made!
What a tumult they raised! How their wild shouts echoed from hill to
hill, and died away in the far distance! They looked like demons. Their
skins were painted of different colours; and, as the dancing went on,
their bodies became warm, and shone as if they had been dipped in oil.
Suddenly a deafening shout of the whole assemblage seemed to shake the
earth. Their greatest warrior (Leopard) came to dance. Leopard was, it
appears, the bravest of them all. He had killed more people in war than
anybody else. He had given more human food to his fellow-townsmen than
many other warriors put together. Hence they all admired and praised
him; and a song describing his feats of arms was sung by those who
surrounded him. How ferocious he looked! He was armed to the teeth.
He had a spear like one of those I have already described. A long
knife hung by its side, and the hand that held the shield carried a
battle-axe also. In dancing, he acted at times as if he were defending
himself against an attack; at other times, as if he were himself
attacking somebody. Once or twice I really thought he meant to throw
his spear at someone. I could hardly breathe while looking at him.
He appeared actually to be a demon. Finally he stopped from sheer
exhaustion, and others took his place.
The next day the men furbished up their arms. I myself cleaned my guns,
and got ready for the chase; so that, if I could get a chance, I might
send a bullet through an elephant.
The war-dish was cooked. It is a mixture of herbs, and is supposed to
inspire people with courage. They rubbed their bodies with it, and
then we started. There were about five hundred men. After leaving the
village we divided into several parties. Each party was well acquainted
with the forest, and knew just where to go. The march was conducted
in perfect silence, so that we might not alarm the elephants. After
proceeding six hours we arrived not far from the hunting-ground where
the elephants were supposed to be. The Fans built shelters, and these
were hardly finished when it began to rain very hard.
The next day some Fans went out to explore the woods, and I joined the
party. The fallen trees, the broken-down limbs, the heavy footprints,
and the trampled underbrush, showed plainly that there had been many
elephants about. There were no regular walks, and they had strayed at
random in the forest.
When the elephants are pleased with a certain neighbourhood, they
remain there a few days. When they have eaten all the food they like,
and nothing remains, they go on to some other place.
The forest here, as everywhere else, was full of rough, strong,
climbing plants, many of which reach to the top of the tallest trees.
They are of every size; some bigger than a man's thigh, while many are
as large as the ropes of which the rigging of a ship is made. These
creepers the natives twist together; and, after working very hard, they
succeed in constructing a huge fence, or obstruction. Of course, it
is not sufficient to hold the elephant; but when he gets entangled in
its meshes, it is strong enough to check him in his flight, till the
hunters can have time to kill him. When an elephant is once caught,
they surround the huge beast, and put an end to his struggles by
incessant discharges of their spears and guns.
While the others worked, I explored the forest. Seeing that the
men were careful in avoiding a certain place, I looked down on the
ground, and saw nothing. Then, looking up, I saw an immense piece of
wood suspended by the wild creepers, high in the air; and, fixed in
it at intervals, I saw several large, heavy, sharp pointed pieces of
iron pointing downwards. The rope that holds up this contrivance is
so arranged that the elephant cannot help touching it, if he passes
underneath. Then the _hanou_ (such is the name given to the trap) is
loosened, it falls with a tremendous force on his back; the iron points
pierce his body, and the piece of wood, in falling, generally breaks
his spine.
I also saw in different places, large, deep ditches, intended as
pitfalls for the elephant. When he runs away, or roams around at night,
he often falls into these pits, and that is the end of him; for, in
falling, he generally breaks his legs. Sometimes, when the natives go
and visit the pit they have made, they find nothing but the bones of
the elephant and his ivory tusks.
The fence that the natives had made must have been several miles long,
and in many places was several rows deep; and now there were elephant
pits beside, and the _hanous_.
We were, you must remember, in a mountainous country; and I could
scarcely believe my eyes when I saw plainly the footprints of this
animal where I myself had to hold to the creepers to be able to ascend.
When everything was ready, part of the men went silently and hid
themselves upon the limbs or besides the trunks of trees near the
barrier or "tangle." Others of us took a circuitous route in an
opposite direction from that in which we had come. After we had got
miles away from the "tangle," we formed a chain as long in extent as
the fence, and moved forward, forming a semi-circle, with the men ten
or twenty yards apart from each other.
Presently, all along the line the hunting horns were sounded, wild
shouts were sent up, and, making all the noise they could, the
Fans advanced in the direction of the "tangle." The elephants were
entrapped. Hearing the noise, of course they moved away from us,
breaking down everything before them in their flight. If they tried to
go to the right, they heard the same wild shouts; if they tried to go
to the left, they heard the same. There was no other way for them to
go but straight ahead; and there, though they did not know it, were
the tangle, the pits, and the _hanous_. They were going to surer death
than if they had tried to break our lines; for then most, if not all
of them, would have escaped. We were too far from each other to hinder
them.
Onward we pressed, the circle of those giving chase becoming smaller
and smaller, and the crashing of the underbrush more distinct, as we
approached the elephants in their flight. The men's countenances became
excited. They got their spears in readiness; and soon we came in sight
of the tangles. What an extraordinary sight lay before me; I could
distinguish one elephant, enraged, terrified, tearing at everything
with his trunk and feet, but all in vain! The tough creepers of the
barrier in no instance gave way before him. Spear after spear was
thrown at him. The Fans were everywhere, especially up on the trees,
where they were out of the reach of the elephant. The huge animal began
to look like a gigantic porcupine, he was stuck so full of spears. Poor
infuriated beast! I thought he was crazy. Every spear that wounded him
made him more furious! But his struggles were in vain. He had just
dropped down when I came close to him; and to end his sufferings, I
shot him through the ear. After a few convulsions of limb all became
quiet. He was dead.
Some of the elephants had succeeded in going through the tangle, and
were beyond reach.
Four elephants had been slain; and I was told that a man had been
killed by one of the elephants, which turned round and charged his
assailants. This man did not move off in time, and was trampled under
foot by the monstrous beast. Fortunately, the elephant got entangled;
and, in an instant, he was covered with spears, and terribly wounded.
After much loss of blood he dropped down lifeless.
I am sure you will agree with me, after the description I have given
of a Fan elephant hunt, that the men of this tribe are gifted with
remarkable courage and presence of mind.
They have certain rules for hunting the elephant. These tell you
never to approach an elephant, except from behind; he cannot turn
very fast, and you have, therefore, time to make your escape. He
generally rushes blindly forward. Great care must also be taken that
the strong creepers, which are so fatal to the elephant, do not also
catch and entangle the hunters themselves. A man lying in wait to spear
an elephant should always choose a stout tree, in order that the
infuriated beast, should he charge at it, may not uproot it.
The next day, there was a dance round the elephant, while the
fetich-man cut a piece from one of the hind legs. This was intended for
their idol. The meat was cooked in presence of the fetich-man, and of
those who had speared the elephant. As soon as all the meat had been
cooked they danced round it; and a piece was sent into the woods for
the spirit to feed upon, if he liked. The next day, the meat was all
cut up in small pieces, then hung up and smoked.
The cooking and smoking lasted three days, and I can assure you it
is the toughest meat I ever tasted. Of course, like the Fans, I had
no other food; and for three days I ate nothing but elephant meat. I
wish I could give you a notion how it tastes; but really I do not know
what to compare it with. Beef, mutton, lamb, pork, venison, make not
the slightest approach to a resemblance: and as for poultry, such a
comparison would be positively aggravating!
The proboscis being one of the favourite morsels, a large piece of it
was given to me. The foot is another part reputed to be a great dainty,
and two feet were sent me, together with a large piece of the leg for a
roast.
But the meat was so tough that I had to boil it for twelve hours;
and then I believe it was as tough as ever; it seemed to be full of
gristle. So, the next day, I boiled it again for twelve hours; all my
trouble, however, was unavailing, for it was still hopelessly tough! I
may say, that the more I ate of elephant meat the more I got to dislike
it. I do not think I shall ever hanker after elephant steak as long
as I live. I wonder if you boys would like it? I wish I had some, and
could induce you to taste of it. I am inclined to think you would
agree with me, and never desire to renew your acquaintance with it.
How glad I was when I returned to Ndiayai village; and no wonder,
for we had rain every day in the woods. As for the poor man who had
been killed by the elephant, his body was sent to another clan to be
devoured; for the cannibals do not eat their own people.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: FAN BLACKSMITHS AT WORK.]