ELEPHANT GENERAL INTELLIGENCE. 401 



obliged to congregate in large numbers where water is 

 to be obtained. Being stationed near a water supply, and 

 knowing that a large herd of elephants were in the neigh- 

 bourhood, Major Skinner resolved to watch their pro- 

 ceedings. On a moonlight night, therefore, he 



climbed a tree about four hundred yards from the water, and 

 waited patiently for two hours before he heard or saw anything 

 of the elephants. At length he saw a huge beast issue from 

 the wood, and advance cautiously across the open ground to 

 within a hundred yards of the tank, where he stood perfectly 

 motionless ; and the rest of the herd, meanwhile, were so quiet 

 that not the least sound was to be heard from them. Gradu- 

 ally, at three successive advances, baiting some minutes after 

 each, he moved up to the water's edge, in which, however, be did 

 not think proper to quench bis thirst, but remained for several 

 minutes listening in perfect stillness. He then returned cau- 

 tiously and slowly to tbe point at which he had issued from 

 tbe wood, from whence he came back with five other elephants, 

 with which be proceeded, somewhat less slowly than before, to 

 within a few yards of the tank, where he posted them as 

 patrols. He tben re-entered the wood and collected the whole 

 berd, which must have amounted to between eighty and a 

 hundred, and led them across the open ground with tbe most 

 extraordinary composure and quiet till they came up to the five 

 sentinels, when be left them for a moment, and again made a 

 reconnaissance at the edge of the tank. At last, being appa- 

 rently satisfied that all was safe, he turned back, aod obviously 

 gave the order to advance ; ' for in a moment,' says Major 

 Skinner, ' tbe whole herd rushed to the water with a degree of 

 unreserved confidence so opposite to the caution and timidity 

 wbicb had marked their previous movements, that nothing will 

 ever persuade me that there was not rational and preconcerted 

 co-operation throughout tbe whole party, and a degree of 

 responsible authority exercised by the patriarch-leader.' l 



Mr. H. L. Jenkins writes to me : 



What I particularly wisb to observe is that there are good 

 reasons for supposing that elephants possess abstract ideas ; for 

 instance, I think it is impossible to doubt that they acquire 

 through tbeir own experience notions of hardness and weight, 

 and the grounds on whicb I am led to think this are as follows. 



1 See his letter to Sir E. Tennent in Nat. Hist, of Ceylon, pp 

 118-20. 



