THE INDIAN ELEPHANT 



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Sanderson states that a herd of seventy-nine elephants under his charge' once had a 

 swim of six hours' duration, and after a short rest on a sand bank accomplished their 

 journey by water in three hours more. An elephant swims very deep in the water, 

 sometimes only showing the end of its trunk, but at others allowing the greater part 

 of its head to appear above the surface. In the case of tame individuals the mahout, 

 or driver, generally stands on the neck of his animal. The pace that an elephant 



INDIAN ELEPHANTS ENJOYING THEMSELVES. 



swims is estimated at about a mile an hour; but this, of course, depends largely on 

 whether the animal is swimming with or against the stream. Unlike that of a hip- 

 popotamus, the body of a freshly-killed elephant floats in water. 

 Paces In regard to movement on land, Mr. Sanderson says that " the.only 



pace of the elephant is the walk, capable of being increased to a fast 

 shuffle of about fifteen miles an hour for very short distances. It can neither trot, 



