Page 212 - The Pirate Coast (By Sir Charles Belgrave)

‘Suppose the body of a chaise, fit only to contain two persons,
to have the top cut off from it, then you have the Howdah which
is placed on the back of the elephant. You ascend to it by a
ladder, the Malioot, at the same time, directing the animal to
place his trunk so that he may put his foot on the curve made for
its reception, is raised to the neck of the creature, across which lie
rides, straggle legged. His boathook shaped instrument is on
the car of the elephant, the hook being for this purpose, and the
sharp point for pricking the elephant, when it does not obey the
orders given to it.
‘As soon as all were adjusted and ready the elephants moved on,
abreast, in a line, from 15 to 20 yards apart. To 111c, it was the
most uncomfortable motion that I could have conceived, between
a walk and a hobble, and so irregular, that l could not in any way
adapt myself to it. 1 was pressing with my foot and with my
back, at the same time, to keep steady.
‘We quickly got into the jungle country with long grass and
reeds from which numbers of birds rose, among which the most
beautiful was the Indian pheasant, but its beauty is all that it is
worth. At last a bird, which I supposed to be a partridge, got
up. I forgot that I was in the presence of the Governor-General,
and I really did not know that if a bird flew across His Excellency
I should not presume to fire until he did. So off went my gun,
at the same instant as did the gun of the Marquis of Hastings.
Down came the bird. Now I was so bad a shot that, had I been
on my feet, instead of being tossed up and down in the Howdah,
I could not have killed in one out of five shots. Yet it was thought
necessary to exclaim “it was Your Excellency who shot it”. I
knew myself that I could not have done the bloody deed, and I
felt ashamed of my want of good breeding and etiquette.
‘Shortly after this, a herd of wild swine started rushing through
between the legs of the elephants. What took place with the
other elephants, I cannot state, but as soon as the boar rushed
between the legs of the one on which I was mounted, it threw its
trunk into the air, trumpeting, and at the same time, drawing its
body together in a most disagreeable manner, so that I expected
something like a tiger to spring out. However, my mind w*s
not long left in suspense. The animals were goaded into
rapid pace, in chase, and strange to say, if the walk was uncom­
fortable, the run was most rapid and easy. The herd was over-
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