CHAPTER XVII
SHOTS FROM ABOVE
"There they are!"
"My, what a lot of big ones!"
"Jove! Mr. Anderson, see those tusks!"
"Yes, you ought to get what you want this time, Mr. Durban."
"Bless my hatband! There must be two hundred of them!" exclaimed Mr.Damon.
"I'm glad I recharged my rifle last night!" exclaimed Tom Swift."It's fully loaded now."
Then followed exulting cries and shouts of the natives, who werefollowing our friends, the elephant hunters, who had given voice tothe remarks we have just quoted.
It was early in the morning, and the hunt was about to start, forthe news brought in by the runner the night before had been closelyfollowed by the brutes themselves, and at dawn our friends wereastir, for scouts brought in word that the elephants, including manybig ones, were passing along only a few miles from the Africanvillage.
Cautiously approaching, with the wind blowing from the elephants tothem, the white hunters made their way along. Mr. Durban was in thelead, and when he saw a favorable opportunity he motioned for theothers to advance. Then, when he noticed the big bull sentinels ofthe herd look about as if to detect the presence of enemies, he gaveanother signal and the hunters sank out of sight in the tall grass.
As for the natives, they were like snakes, unseen but ever present,wriggling along on their hands and knees. They were awaiting theslaughter, when there would be fresh meat in abundance.
At length the old elephant hunter decided that they were near enoughto chance some shots. As a matter of fact, Tom Swift, with hiselectric rifle, had been within range some time before, but as hedid not want to spoil the sport for the others, by firing andkilling, and so alarming the herd, he had held back. Now they couldall shoot together.
"Let her go!" suddenly cried Mr. Durban, and they took aim.
There was a fusillade of reports and several of the big brutestoppled over.
"Bless my toothbrush!" cried Mr. Damon, "that's the time I got one!"
"Yes, and a fine specimen, too!" added Mr. Durban, who had onlysucceeded in downing a small bull, with an indifferent pair oftusks. "A fine specimen, Mr. Damon, I congratulate you!"
As for Tom Swift, he had killed two of the largest elephants in theherd.
But now the hunters had their work cut out for them, since thebeasts had taken fright and were charging away at what seemed anawkward gait, but which, nevertheless, took them rapidly over theground.
"Come on!" cried Mr. Durban. "We must get some more. Some of thefinest tusks I have ever seen are running away from us!"
He began to race after the retreating herd, but it is doubtful if hewould have caught up to them had not a band of natives, who hadcrept up and surrounded the beasts, turned them by shouts and thebeating of tom-toms. Seeing an enemy in front of them, the elephantsturned, and our friends were able to get in several more shots. TomSwift picked out only those with immense tusks, and soon had severalto his credit. Ned Newton also bagged some prizes.
But finally the elephants, driven to madness by the firing and theyells of the natives, broke through the line of black men, andcharged off into the jungle, where it was not only useless butdangerous to follow them.
"Well, we have enough," said Mr. Durban, and when the tusks had beencollected it was found that indeed a magnificent and valuable supplyhad been gathered.
"But I have yet to get my prize ones," said the old hunter with asigh. "Maybe we'll find the elephant with them when we locate thered pygmies."
"If we do, we'll have our work cut out for us," declared Tom.
As on the other occasion after the hunt, there was a great feast forthe natives, who invited tribes from miles around, and for two days,while the tusks were being cut out and cleaned, there were barbequeson every side.
It was one afternoon, when they were seated in the shade of theairship, cleaning their guns, and discussing the plans they had bestfollow next, that our travellers suddenly heard a great commotionamongst the Africans, who had for the past hour been very quiet,most of them sleeping after the feasts. They yelled and shouted, andbegan to beat their drums.
"Something is coming," said Ned.
"Perhaps there's going to be a fight," suggested Tom.
"Maybe it's the red pygmies," said Mr. Damon. "Bless my--"
But what he was going to bless he did not say, for at that instantit seemed as if every native in sight suddenly disappeared, almostlike magic. They sank down into the grass, darted into their huts,or hid in the tall grass.
"What can it be?" cried Tom, as he looked to see that his rifle wasin working order.
"Some enemy," declared Mr. Anderson.
"There they are!" cried Ned Newton, and as he spoke there burst intoview, coming from the tall grass that covered the plain about thevillage, a herd of savage, wild buffaloes. On rushed the shaggycreatures, their long, sharp horns seeming like waving spears asthey advanced.
"Here's more sport!" cried Tom.
"No! Not sport! Danger!" yelled Mr. Durban. "They're headed rightfor us!"
"Then we'll stop them," declared the young inventor, as he raisedhis gun.
"No! No!" begged the old hunter. "It's as much as our lives areworth to try to stop a rush of wild buffaloes. You couldn't do itwith Gatling guns. We can kill a few, but the rest won't stop untilthey've finished us and the aeroplane too."
"Then what's to be done?" demanded Mr. Anderson.
"Get into the airship!" cried Mr. Durban. "Send her up. It's theonly way to get out of their path. Then we can shoot them fromabove, and drive them away!"
Quickly the adventurers leaped into the craft. On thundered thebuffaloes. Tom feared he could not get the motor started quicklyenough. He did not dare risk rising by means of the aeroplanefeature, but at once started the gas machine.
The big bag began to fill. Nearer came the wild creatures,thundering over the ground, snorting and bellowing with rage.
"Quick, Tom!" yelled Ned, and at that instant the Black Hawk shotupward, just as the foremost of the buffaloes passed underneath,vainly endeavoring to gore the craft with their sweeping horns. Theair-travelers had risen just in time.
"Now it's our turn!" shouted Ned, as he began firing from above intothe herd of infuriated animals below him. Tom, after seeing that themotor was working well, sent the airship circling about, whilestanding in the steering tower, he guided his craft here and there,meanwhile pouring a fusillade of his wireless bullets into thebuffaloes. Many of them dropped in their tracks, but the big herdcontinued to rush here and there, crashing into the frail nativehuts, tearing them down, and, whenever a black man appeared, chasingafter him infuriatedly.
"Keep at it!" cried Mr. Durban, as he poured more lead into thebuffaloes. "If we don't kill enough of them, and drive the othersaway, there won't be anything left of this village."
Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle; Or, Daring Adventures in Elephant Land Page 17
