44 



The Wild Elephant. 



by the same arrangement that he is enabled, on uneven 

 ground, to Hft his feet, which are tender and sensitive, 

 with deUcacy, and plant them with such decision as to 



body, soon disarranging the centre of 

 gravity, would certainly topple over,) 

 proceeds thus. His first manoeuvre is 

 to kneel down close to the edge of the 

 declivity, placing his chest to the 

 ground : one fore leg is then cautiously 

 passed a short way down the slope ; and 

 if there is no natural protection to afford 



a firm footing, he speedily forms one 

 by stamping into the soil if moist, or 

 kicking out a footing if dry. This 

 point gained, the other fore leg is 

 brought down in the same way ; and 

 performs the same work, a little in 

 advance of the first ; which is thus at 

 libertj' to move lower still. Then, first 



one and then the second of the hind 

 legs is carefully drawn over the side, 

 and the hind feet in turn occupy the 

 resting-places previously used and left 

 by the fore ones. The course, however, 

 in such precipitous ground is not straight 

 from top to bottom, but slopes along 

 the face of the bank, descending till the 

 animal gains the level below. This an 



elephant has done, at an angle of 45 

 degrees, carrj'ing a hmvdaJt, its occu- 

 pant, his attendant, and sporting ap- 

 paratus : and in a much less time than 

 it takes to describe the operation." 1 

 have observed that an elephant in de- 

 scending a declivity uses his knees, on 

 the side next the bank ; and his feet 

 on the lower side only. 



