One Saber Against an Elephant: A 1904 Tale
Gaston Leroux, the French writer and journalist famous for the novel «The Phantom of the Opera,» was also a passionate traveler. During one of his African expeditions, he witnessed a story that overshadows even the boldest adventure plots.
December 1900. After an exhausting trek through the desert, Leroux«s party made camp on New Year»s Eve. The writer decided to celebrate not only the arrival of 1901 but also the beginning of a new century. He declared a rest day, ordering double rations of provisions and tafia — a local strong drink.
In his tent, Leroux gathered two European assistants. They were joined by his faithful bodyguard, adjutant, and translator, Abdi. Precautions were not unnecessary: in these parts, nomadic Tuareg could appear. But now, to the clinking of champagne glasses, peaceful conversation prevailed. The smoke of Havana cigars mixed with the aroma of Arabian coffee, and the talk turned to African hunting.
«The most interesting animal to hunt is the elephant,» said one of the assistants. «And the most dangerous,» added the other. «It takes considerable courage to attack it even for a group of people armed with rifles.»
Then, to everyone«s surprise, the usually silent Abdi intervened. He asked permission to tell a story. When Leroux asked if he had participated in such a hunt himself, Abdi replied: »Many times. But I want to tell about the hunt of my late father. You say it«s dangerous to go after an elephant with a rifle. What if you go after it with only one ghuradi?»
A ghuradi is a short, curved Mauritanian saber, similar to a Turkish yataghan. Upon hearing this, the Europeans didn«t believe it: »Is that even possible?!«
«It is possible,» Abdi said confidently. «My father did it, and I was a witness.»
He began his story. About thirty years ago, he and his father were returning across a large meadow overgrown with tall grass. Suddenly, heavy footsteps were heard. «It»s an elephant!« whispered the father. »It would be good to get his tusks. The whites would pay a lot of money for them.« The boy objected: to do that, the elephant needs to be killed, and there is no weapon — only the ghuradi at his belt. »With the ghuradi I will go,« replied the father.
From the thickets emerged a huge male. The animal«s position was strange: its hind legs stood in the tall grass, its left front leg rested on a stone boulder, and its right front leg hung helplessly in the air. The elephant seemed afraid to move from the spot. Abdi»s father boldly approached and delivered the first saber blow to the belly. The enraged elephant tried to grab him with its trunk, but the hunter deftly dove between the animal«s legs, which were »like palm tree trunks.«
A deadly game began. The father circled at the giant«s feet, dodging blows from the trunk and the free right leg. Finally, the elephant, apparently deciding to retreat, shifted its left leg from the stone. At that moment, the hunter maneuvered and drove the ghuradi up to the hilt directly into the heart area, then instantly leaped aside. The elephant let out a final roar, staggered, and collapsed to the ground. After waiting a bit, he and his son approached — the animal was dead.
After hearing this story, Leroux and his companions argued for a long time about its plausibility. Everyone agreed on one thing: none of them would have dared such an incredibly risky feat.
This story, recorded by Gaston Leroux, is a vivid trace of an era when Africa was terra incognita for Europeans, full of incredible legends and real feats of local residents. Today, elephant hunting is strictly regulated or prohibited, but such narratives preserve the spirit of the time and demonstrate not only cruelty but also the incredible resourcefulness of humans in confronting nature.
