72 STUDIES IN LIFE AND SENSE. 



of extricating him is much the same as when he is pitted ; that is, by 

 supplying him liberally with straw, boughs, grass, &c.; these materials 

 being thrown to the distressed animal, he forces them down with his 

 trunk, till they are lodged under his fore-feet in sufficient quantity to 

 resist his pressure. Having thus formed a sufficient basis for exertion, 

 the sagacious animal next proceeds to thrust other bundles under his 

 belly, and as far back under his flanks as he can reach ; when such a 

 basis is formed as may be, in his mind, proper to proceed upon, he 

 throws his whole weight forwards, and gets his hind feet gradually 

 upon the straw, &c. Being once confirmed on a solid footing, he 

 will next place the succeeding bundles before him, pressing them 

 well with his trunk, so as to form a causeway by which to reach the 

 firm ground. . . . He will not bear any weight, definitely, until, by 

 trial both with his trunk and the next foot that is to be planted, he 

 has completely satisfied himself of the firmness of the ground he is to 

 tread upon. . . . The anxiety of the animal when bemired, forms a 

 strong contrast with the pleasure he so strongly evinces on arriving 

 at terra firma" Such an account becomes extremely interesting, as 

 convincing us that much, if not all, of the sagacity which is called 

 forth by such circumstances, must be inherent and original, as 

 opposed to that gained by experience. It cannot be supposed that 

 the accident described can form such a frequent experience of 

 elephant-existence in a wild state, as to constitute a certain basis for 

 acquired knowledge of what to do in the exigency. On the contrary, 

 it seems more reasonable to suppose that the inherent and intuitive 

 sagacity of the animal is simply called forth by the threatened danger, 

 and that such an exigency brings into play mental acts analogous to 

 those whereby, through mechanical and similar contrivances to those 

 employed by the elephant, man might rescue himself or his property 

 from immersion in the swamps. 



The memory of elephants is of highly remarkable nature, both as- 

 to its duration, and in its operation as enabling the animal to recog- 

 nise friends and foes. I am fortunate in being able to place on 

 record an instance of elephant memory of very interesting kind, and 

 one which serves to show in a highly typical manner the remembrance 

 by these animals of kindness, and also of the reverse treatment. In 

 1874, Wombv\ ell's menagerie visited Tenbury in Gloucestershire, and 

 on that occasion the female elephant, " Lizzie " by name, drank a 

 large quantity of cold water when heated after a long walk ; the 

 animal, as a consequence, being attacked with severe internal spasms. 

 A local chemist, a Mr. Turley, being called in as medical adviser, 

 succeeded in relieving the elephant's pain, the treatment including 

 the application of a very large blister to the side. The menagerie in 

 due course went its way, but in May 1879, ^ again visited Tenbury, 

 and as Mr. Turley stood at his shop door watching the zoological 



