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side of which is thickly overgrown with
fine bush. Along this road the boy had
to proceed, but he had not gone far
into the fine bush when they saw him
returning at full speed, with the ele
phant after him in hot pursuit. The
monster, which has great speed when
he chooses to use it, was evidently gain
ing on the horse, while the boy, calling
out in Dutch, ‘Fire, fire! for God’s
sake fire, or I shall be killed ! ’ rode for
protection towards the Duke’s party,
and galloped round their flank. Upon
that the elephant did not slacken his
pace, but with ears and tail erect he
rushed on right in the direction of the
Duke, who was standing in the centre
of his line.
“There was something very peculiar
in the way the elephant advanced. It
did not look like either a trot or a gal
lop, but more resembled the gliding
motion of a ship in smooth water, as if
the immense monster were bearing down
under a press of sail before the wind.
It has been put into the Cape papers
that the Duke went on his knee to fire ;
but nothing of the kind occurred. He
coolly took his large gun from the hand
of young Atkinson, who had been car
rying it for him, and did not pull a
trigger until the elephant was within
less than twenty yards. He then dis
charged both barrels in quick succes
sion, sending one bullet into the ani
mals head just above the right eye, and
then hitting him with the second bullet
a little lower down, between the ttfunk
and the root of the right tusk. No/one
could possibly have been more steady
and deliberate than the Duke was when
he fired, and it was fortunate for him
self that he was able to display such
pluck ; for he allowed the elephant to
get so close, that if he had been at all
nervous, and his aim less sure, his own
life and the lives of some of those at
his side would inevitably have been
sacrificed. As soon as the elephant re
ceived the Duke’s two bullets, he stop
ped in his career, shook his head, and
reeled round, presenting his broadside ;
he then staggered a few yards further,
and when he was in the act of falling,
some of the others fired —but these
shots were superfluous, for the Duke
had given the poor brute his quietus ,
and he would have died on the spot if
not a second gun had been discharged.
“Meantime, the hunters had got a
second elephant at bay, which was des
patched after receiving not less than
forty shots.
“Before the elephants were skinned,
the Duke measured them both, and
they were found to be just the same
size—interesting twins, perhaps, who
were wandering from forest to forest to
complete their education. Their mea
surement was ten feet in height, twenty
four feet from the tip of the trunk to
the tip of the tail, and seventeen feet
round the body.
The elephant is an ugly animal when
dead ; but his flesh is good eating.”
BURKE’S WEEKLY FOR BOYS AND GIRLS.
Written for Burke’s Weekly.
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THE MIDNIGHT CROSS.
IN IDYLS.
The Grays at Home.
(Q|p T)P thr hill! mine honored Gray!—
S-rs We are going home-"To Stay 1 ”
Around the hill, below the heights
f Cling the glooms, and gleam the
lights
Glamor of the evil eyes !
Spume of hate that never dies! —
Let the cauldron boil below !
Wish the world a fairer foe! —
Balsam to our battle-scars,
Climbing nearer to the stars !
Homeward, with the rapturo that
Beached the Ark on Ararat!
All the ways of war and weather
We have worn the harness-leather.
Days, with never cymbal-boat,
Save the music of thy feet !
Nights, with never star or guide,
Save the glimmer of thy hide,
Stained with all the tints of toil.
And “ variations of the soil,”
Deeper tinct with every stain
The tireless wine-press wrings from pain I
Not the frosted hills display
Richer dapple, Oh 1 my Gray !
Not the vales, at vintage, hold
Riper deeps of gloom and gold.
Up the Hill 1 Oh 1 grace and speed
And power unplummeted of need I
These have cheered the night agonel
These aro musical at dawn 1 —
Ringing to the brightning dome,
Climbing upwards, onwards, Home!
Far above the cauldron’s spume —
With starry cross and stainless plume !
We have shared tho “ corn ” and heather —
We are going home together!
On thy crest, this loving sign !
Bo My Loud’s white mark on mine.
F. 0. T.
Written for Burke’s Weekly.
THE YOUNG- EXPLOEEES;
OR, BOY-MFE IN TEXAS.
BY JOHN C. DUVAL,
Author of “ Jack Dobell ; or, A Boy's Ad
ventures in Texas," “ The Adventures
of Big-Foot Wallaceetc.
CHAPTER VIII.
Oudjo and the Pack-mule —Plenty of Game, hut
no Shooting —ln Camp Henry takes the
First Watch —A Monster Rattlesnake — Cud
jo's Wonderful Snake Stories —Uncle Seth
brings in the Venison— Good Fare and Good
Appetites— Uncle Seth’s Opinion of the Ne
gro.
s f / o’ £
1
UD J 0 had a good deal of
Wuhlii trouble the first day with the
pack-mule, who would stop oc
casionally, in spite of his grumblings
and blessings, to take a bite at the grass
where it was unusually luxuriant and
tempting; however, he was thoroughly
broken in before we stopped for the
night, and from that time on he fol
lowed us like a dog. All we bad to do
was to put bis pack on securely when
we started, and then turn him loose,
now and then giving him a passing
glance, to see that none of the nu
merous traps tied to his saddle were
missing.
To-day we passed over a beautiful
undulating country, mostly prairie, in
terspersed here and there with mots,
or groves of timber. AVe saw numerous
herds of deer, and one or two droves of
antelopes, on the way, but we did not
attempt to kill any, as “ sliootin’”
while on the march was expressly
against Uncle Seth’s orders.
“Don’t do it,” said Uncle Seth to
Will, when he wanted to make a.dash
into a herd of antelopes; “we’ve got
a long road ahead on us, and we must
favor our horses all we can, or may
be so some on us will have to ride
Shanks’ mare afore we git back ; and
Shanks’ mare, you know, boys,” lie
added, “though she’s a safe and reli
able animal on the long run, and never
shys nor pitches, is amity slow critter,
and a very tiresome one to travel fur.”
About three o’clock in the evening,
we came to a grove of live oaks, near a
fine pool of clear water, the very head
pool, Uncle Seth said, of the Martinez
■Creek, and here he decided to pitch
jeamp for the night.
“ We’ve made but a small day’s tra
vel,” said he, “but there’s no burry;
and its always best for the animals not
to push ’em at the start; and besides,”
he continued, “if we leave this water,
we won’t find any more till we gits to
the Salado. And now,- boys,’’.said lie,
“ while you are stretching the tent and
fixin up camp, I'll jest step out a little
ways and git some ven’son for supper ;
and while 1 m gone, Mr. Henry will
take his stand yonder on that rise,
where he kin see all around, and if he
sees anything at all suspicious moving
on the perara, he must let you know,
and you must bring in all the horses,
and tie ’em up hard and fast to the
trees about the camp.”
Uncle Seth threw his rifle over his
shoulder, and went off on foot after the
venison, and Henry took his gun and
walked off towards the “rise in the pe
rara,” in compliance with Uncle Seth's
orders. The rest of us soon had the
horses all staked out and the tent
pitched; while Cudjo collected a heap
of fallen limbs for fuel, and filled all
the canteens with water at the pool.
Will, who was cutting some tent pins
at the edge of a little thicket, suddenly
called out to us to come there and help
him kill a monstrous snake. AVe all
picked up sticks and clubs, and has
tened towards him; but before we got
within forty yards of the place we could
hear the “singing” of the snake’s rat-
tles —and a very peculiar sound it is,
and one that can never be mistaken by
those who have once heard it for any
other. The snake, which was a very
large one, was lying in his coil ready
for striking and was evidently much
enraged at Will for having ventured so
near his premises. Lawrence stepped
towards him with a club, with the in
tention of killing him, when I said :
“Hold on, Lawrence, and let Cudjo
get a crack at him ; he’ll fix him in
short order.”
“No, tank you,” said Cudjo, shying
off from the dangerous-looking reptile ;
“I aint gwying to push myself ahead
of ‘buckra.’ Dis nigger been learn
better manner den dat. Let Massa
Lawrence fix him.”
So Lawrence “fixed him” with a
few blows of his club upon the head,
and we then dragged him out into the
open ground. AVill, who had a mea
suring tape in his pocket, took his
dimensions, and found that he was
fifteen inches round the middle, and
six leet seven inches in length. He
had thirteen rattles and a “ button.”
“ Ki!” said Cudjo, who had ventured
up, when he saw that the snake was
dead, “Ki! what be got in he inside?
Bress de Lord ! I’m goin’ to see ;” and
drawing his butcher knife, he ripped
the snake open near the middle, when
out popped a full-grown rabbit.
“ Why, how do you suppose be
caught that fellow, Cudjo?” asked
AVill.
i
“He charm him, sa, sai<| Cudjo.
“ He jis look in de rabbit’s eye, aiJftifl
rabbit squeal, and try he best to nro
away, but he jis run roun’ and roun’ in
a ring, ebery time gettin’ closer and
closer to de debbil’s mout, till at last
he run right down he troat. I see him
do dat many time myself, Mass AVill.”
“And do they ever charm people?”
asked AVill.
“Dat dey do,” said Cudjo, “ Uncle
Caesar tells me .he see his darter one
day in de tater patch, running roun’
and roun’, jest like de rabbit, and
screamin’ loud as she could all de
time; and when he went to her to see
what was de matter, dar lay a big
snake dat look her right in de eye,
and es Uncle Cmsar hadn’t cotch bolt
of her arm and jerk her away, she
run into he mouf sure. Dats de trufe
what I is telling you, Mass AVill, sure.”
In a few minutes, after killing the
snake, we heard Uncle Seth’s rifle go
oft', and not long afterwards, we saw
him coming towards camp, with a big
piece of something banging from
his shoulder, which proved to be the
haunch and saddle of a buck he bad
shot.
“Now, boys,” said he, throwing the
venison upon the ground, “you kin
start a fire as soon as you please, and
we’ll have supper ; I’m as hungry a3 a
whole pack of wolves.”
The fire was quickly started, the cof
fee pot put on, and in a little while