"Don't be alarmed. You are in no danger."
In bewilderment she looked up and saw to her astonishment and relief a white man sitting on the neck of one of the great beasts.
"Oh, I am so glad!" she exclaimed. "I was terrified. I thought that these were wild elephants."
Dermot smiled.
"So they are," he said. "But they won't hurt you. Can I help you? What are you doing here? Have you lost your way in the jungle?"
By this time Noreen had recovered her presence of mind and began to realise the situation. It was natural that this man should be astonished to find an Englishwoman alone and in distress in the forest. Her appearance was calculated to cause him to wonder—and a feminine instinct made her hands go up to her untidy hair, as she suddenly thought of her dishevelled state. She picked up her hat and put it on.
"I've had a fall from my pony," she explained, trying to reduce her unruly tresses to order. "It shied at the elephants and threw me. Then I suppose it bolted."
She looked around but could see nothing except elephants, which were regarding her solemnly.
"But where have you come from? Are you far from your camp?" persisted Dermot. "Shall I take you to it?"
"Oh, we are not in camp," replied Noreen. "I live on a tea-garden. It is quite near. I can walk back, thank you, if you are sure that the elephants won't do me any harm."