I fully expected it to miss fire; no sights were visible, and I had to guess the aim with the advancing elephant within five yards of me.

Hopelessly I pulled the slippery trigger.

The rifle did not even hang fire, and the rogue fell into the deep bed of mud stone dead.

If the rifle had missed fire I must have been killed, as escape would have been impossible.

It was with great difficulty that I was extricated from my muddy position by the joint exertions of myself and gun-bearers.
Elephants, buffaloes, and hogs are equally fond of wallowing in the mud.
A buffalo will gallop through a swamp, hock deep, in which a horse would be utterly powerless, even without a rider.