“I am sure,” said Nell, “that he would not hurt us now if we went down to him,” and in order to make sure she called down to the elephant:
“Elephant, dear elephant, you would not hurt us, would you?”
And as the elephant moved his trunk as if in answer, she turned triumphantly to Stasch: “Look! He says ‘Yes!’ ”
“Perhaps so,” replied Stasch; “elephants are very intelligent animals, and this one has evidently come to the conclusion that we are necessary for his welfare. Who can say whether he may not be a little grateful to us? It is better not to attempt it now, and certainly Saba would not dare do it, for he would be killed at once. Perhaps in time they may become friends.”
All further conversation about the beauty of the elephant was cut short by Kali, who, foreseeing that he would have to work hard every day to obtain food for the beast, approached Stasch, smiled cheerfully, and said:
“Great Man kill elephant and Kali eat him, instead of gathering grass and branches for him.”
But the “Great Man’s” thoughts were miles away from killing the elephant, and as he had a very happy disposition, he replied while standing there:
Unfortunately he had forgotten the word for “donkey” in the Ki-swahili language—so he used the English word “donkey” and Kali, who did not understand any English, concluded that this name was applied to him as a compliment or a reward, for the children soon saw him turn toward Mea and heard him bragging as follows:
“Mea has black skin and black head and Kali is a donkey.”
“The Great Man himself said that Kali was a donkey.”
Stasch, after ordering them both to guard the young lady like the apple of their eye, and to call him at once should anything happen, grasped his rifle and started off toward the fallen rock that blocked up the gorge. When he reached the spot he examined everything very carefully, inspected all the cracks, put a twig into a crevice which he discovered in the lower part of the rock and measured its depth exactly, then he slowly returned to the camping place, opened his cartridge-case and began to count the cartridges.
Scarcely had he counted three hundred when from out of a tall baobab-tree near by, about five hundred feet from the tent, he heard Mea’s voice crying: