Chap. II.] 



HABITS WIIEX WILD. 



295 



elephant's leg are not veiy apparent, except when he lies 

 down.^ 



It is a strong illustration of the \4tahty of error, that 

 the delusion thus exposed by Dicuil in the ninth centiu-y, 

 was renewed by ]\L\tthew Paris in the thu'teenth ; and 

 stranger still, that Matthew not only saw but made a 

 draW'Uig of the elephant presented to King Henry III. by 

 the King of France in 1255, in which he nevertheless re- 

 presents the legs as mthout joints.^ 



In the numerous mediaeval treatises on natural history, 

 known under the title of Bestiaries, this delusion re- 

 garding the elephant is often repeated ; and it is given 

 at length in a metrical version of the Physiologus of 

 Theobaldus, amongst the AiTindel Manuscripts in the 

 British Museum.^ 



With the Proven9al song writers, the helplessness of 



^ '^ Sed idem Julius, unimi de ele- 

 phantibus mentiens, falso loquitur; 

 dicens elephantem nunquam jacere; 

 dum illc sicutbos certissinie jacet, ut 

 popidi communiter regni Francorum 

 elephantem, in tempore Imperatoris 

 Karoli viderunt. Sed, forsitan, ideo 

 hoc de elephante ficte sestimando 

 scriptum est, eo quod genua et suf- 

 fragines sui nisi quando jacet, non 

 palam apparent." — Dicuiltjs, De 

 3Iensura Orbis Terrce, c. vii. 



'^ Cotton MSS. Nero. D. 1. fol. 

 168, b. 



s Arumhl MSS. No. 292, fol. 4, 

 &c. It has been printed in the 

 Reliquice AntiqiKS, vol. i. p. 208, by 

 Mr. Wright, to whom I am indebted 

 for the following- rendering of the 

 passage refen-ed to : — 



in water ge sal stonden 



in water to mid side 



(Sat wanne hire harde tide 



?)at ge ne fiille niSer nogt 



(Sat it most in hire (Sogt 



for ho ne haven no liS 



(Sat he mugon risen wiJS, etc. 



" They will stJind in the water, 

 in water up to the miciillo of the side, 

 that when it comes to them liard, 

 tlicj- may not fall down : 

 that is most in their thought, 

 for they have no joint 

 to enable them to rise again. 



H'W he resteth him this animal, 



when he walketh abroad, 



hearken how it is here told. 



Kor he is all unwieldy, 



forsooth he seeks out a tree, 



that is strong and steadfast, 



and le.ins confidently against it, 



when he is weary of walkuig. 



The hunter has observed this, 



who seeks to ensnare him, 



where his usual dwelling is, 



to do his will ; 



saws this tree and props it 



in the manner that he best may, 



covers it well that he (the elephant) may not be 



on his guard. 

 Then he makes thereby a seat, 

 himself sits alone and watches 

 whether his trap takes effect. 

 Then comelh this unwieldy elephant, 

 and leans him on his side, 

 rests against the tree in the shadow, 

 and so both fall together. 

 If nobody be by when he falls, 

 he roars ruefully and calls for help, 

 roars ruefully in his manner, 

 hopes he shall through help rise. 

 Then conieth there one (elephant) in haste, 

 hopes he shall cause him to stand up; 

 labours and tries all his might, 

 but he cannot succeed a bit. 

 He knows then no other remedy, 

 but roars with his brother, 

 many and large (elephants) come there in search, 

 thiukiug to make him get up, 

 but for the help of them all 

 he may not get up. 

 Then they all roar one roar, 

 like the blast of a horn or the sound of bell ; 

 for their gre.at roaring 

 a young one cometh running, 

 sloops immediately to him, 

 puts his snout under him, 

 and ^i.-ks the help of them all ; 

 this ill pliaut they raise on his legs : 

 ami thus fails this hunter's trick, 

 in the manner that 1 have told vou." 



U 4 



