We hurried down, hoping that there might yet be time to save the poor fellow's life, regardless at the moment of our victory, which, with hunters in general, would have been a cause of triumph. As we got round, we found that the black had narrowly escaped being crushed to death; indeed, as it was, his legs appeared to lie almost under the monster's back. We drew him out, however, and to our satisfaction found that he was still breathing. Chickango said that he belonged to the Bakeles, and was probably a chief hunter among them. As, however, we were much nearer our own abode than their village, Stanley and I agreed to carry him with us, somewhat, I fancied, to Chickango's astonishment. "Oh! he black fellow, he die; what use carry?" he remarked. Of course we kept to our own opinion, hoping that with David's skill the poor man might recover. He was unable to speak, and was indeed apparently unconscious. "Had my rifle been loaded with ball, I should have saved that poor fellow the last fearful crush; and in future we must not go without one or two of our fowling-pieces loaded with ball," observed Stanley, ramming down a bullet into his rifle. Chickango and I did the same. We then constructed a rough litter, on which we placed the injured negro. We bore him along, my cousin and Chickango carrying the head and I the feet part of the litter. We found the weight considerable, especially over the rough ground we had to traverse, but the life of a fellow-creature depended upon our perseverance. Chickango carefully noted the spot where the elephant lay, that we might return as soon as possible for some of the meat and the tusks, which were very large. We reached the spot where our friends were cutting out the canoe just as they were about to leave it, and we were thankful to have their assistance in carrying the stranger. Kate got a great fright seeing us coming, thinking that one of our party had been killed. David instantly applied himself to examining the hurts of the negro. He found that his left arm had been broken, and the ribs on the same side severely crushed. "The injuries might be serious for a European," he observed; "but the blood of an African, unheated by the climate, escapes inflammation, and I have hopes that he may recover." Senhor Silva had recovered his senses, though still very weak, and when I went to see him, he expressed his gratitude for the attention with which David and the young ladies had treated him. Chickango was very eager to set out immediately, in order to bring in the elephant's tusks and some meat, but Stanley considered that it was too late in the day, and put off the expedition till the following morning.