The Elephant 19 



by so bulky a creature, and the noiselessness of its move- 

 ments, are mentioned as evidences of great sagacity. An 

 elephant, however, cannot make a noise with its feet 

 except by kicking something out of the way or breaking 

 it; their formation renders its tread, under ordinary cir- 

 cumstances, inaudible. The body also being elliptical in 

 its long diameter, passes through undergrowth, when the 

 animal is moving slowly, like a vessel through water. 

 Further, obstacles that do not offer too much resistance 

 are put aside easily by the trunk, which has all those vari- 

 eties of motion that about fifty thousand sets of muscles 

 can confer. More than this, quietness is not necessarily 

 a mark of caution, foresight, or self-restraint, and some of 

 the wariest creatures in existence are by no means quiet. 

 As a matter of fact, if not alarmed or asleep, — in which 

 case he snores in a manner conformable with his size, — 

 the elephant is one of the noisiest of wild beasts. A per- 

 petual crashing accompanies both individuals and herds 

 while feeding, and in hours of repose they frequently 

 trumpet, their deep abdominal rumble is often heard, and 

 sounds expressive of contentment or dissatisfaction con- 

 stantly break the silence of the forest. 



When danger is apprehended, if they do not dash away 

 "with the rush of a storm," elephants are apt to remain 

 motionless for a time, while straining their most perfect 

 senses — those of hearing and smell — in order to ascer- 

 tain its character and proximity, or one or more may 

 advance cautiously in order to see. Having done this, 

 they depart as secretly as possible, and in the way men- 

 tioned, but why anybody should wonder that these crea- 



