296 



THE ELEPHANT. 



[Part VJII. 



tlie fallen elephant was a favourite simile, and amongst 

 others Eichard de Barbezieux, in the latter half of the 

 twelfth century, sung ^, 



^' Atressi cum 1' olifans 

 Que quan cliai no s' pot levar." 



As elephants were but rarely seen in Europe prior to the 

 seventeenth century, there were but few opportunities of 

 correcting the popular fallacy by ocular demonstration. 

 Hence Shakspeare still beheved that, 



" The elepliant hath joints ; hut none for courtesy : 

 His legs are for necessity, not flexiu'e : " '^ 



and Donne sang of 



" Nature's great masterpiece, an Elephant ; 

 The only hannless gi'eat thing : 

 Yet Nature hath given him no knee to bend : 

 Himself he up props, on himself relies ; 

 Still sleeping stands." ^ 



Sir Thomas Browne, whilst he argues against the de- 

 lusion, does not fail to record his suspicion, that " although 

 the opinion at present be reasonably well suppressed, yet 

 from the strings of tradition and fruitful recurrence of 

 erroiu:, it was not improbable it might revive in the next 

 generation;"^ — an anticipation which has proved singu- 

 larly correct ; for the heralds still continued to explain 

 that the elephant is the emblem of watchfulness, " nee 

 jacet in somno"^ and poets almost of our own times paint 

 the scene when 



• One of the most venerable au- 

 thorities by whom the fallacy vf&s 

 transmitted to modem times was 

 PiriLiP de TnATJN, who wi-ote, about 

 the year 1121 a.d., his Liore des 

 Creatures, dedicated to Adelaide of 

 Louvaine, Queen of Hemy I. of 

 England. In the copy of it printed 

 by the Historical Society of Science 

 in 1841, and edited by Mr. Weight, 

 the following passage occurs : — 



" Et Ysidres nus dit ki le elefant desrrit, 

 Es jambes par nature nen ad que une jointure, 



II ne pot pas gesir quant il se volt dormir, 

 Ke si cucliet estait par sei iicn leverait ; 

 Pur <;eo li slot apuior, t'l lui del cuciier, 

 U a arhre u ^ mur, iilnnc dort aseur. 

 E le gpnt de la terro, ki li volent conquere, 

 I,i mur enfunderunt, u le arbre enciserunt ; 

 Quant li elefant vendrat, ki s'i apuierat. 

 La arbre u le mur carrat, e il tribucherat ; 

 Issi faiterement le parnent cele gent." — P. 100. 



^ Troilns and Cressida, act ii. sc. 

 3. A.D, 1609. 



3 Progress of the Said, a.d. 16.33. 



* Sir T. Beoavne, Vtdyar Errors, 

 A.D. 1646. 



'•> liANDAL Home's Academy of 

 Armory, A.D. 1678. Home only 



