ELEPHANT. 



405 



and tied behind his shoulders, then the long end is 

 carried back close to his rump, and there fastened, 

 after a couple of turns more have been made round 

 his body. Another cord is next fastened to the girth, 

 and from thence carried under his tail like a crupper, 

 and brought forward and fastened by a turn or two to 

 each of the girths by which the whole is connected, 

 and each turn of the cords serves to keep the rest in 

 their places. After this a strong rope is put round 

 his back, and made fast on each side to the girth 

 and crupper, so as to confine the motion of his thighs, 

 and prevent his taking a full step. These smaller 

 ropes being properly adjusted, a couple of large cables 

 with running nooses are put round his neck, and, after 

 being drawn moderately tight, and the nooses secured 

 from running closer, they are tied to the ropes on 

 each side. While these operations are going on, the 

 other hunters stand before the gate of the passage, 

 tickling his trunk, and diverting his attention with a 

 spike or a bunch of cocoa-nut leaves, or sugar canes, 

 so that the cords, in general, are made fast without 

 much opposition or difficulty. Occasionally, how- 

 ever, he will seize hold of the ropes with his trunk 

 and endeavour to break them, particularly those 

 which are tied about his feet, or he will try to bite 

 them through with his grinders, but the hunters then 

 goad him with sharpened bamboos, or very light 

 spears, so as to make him quit his hold. Those who 

 are employed in putting the ropes round his body and 

 over his head, are stationed above him on a small kind 

 of platform, consisting of a few bars run across through 

 the openings of the palisades, and as an elephant 

 cannot see anything that is above and rather behind 

 his head, they are very little incommoded by him, 

 although he appears to smell them, and endeavours 

 to catch them with his trunk. As soon as the whole 

 of the apparatus is secured in a proper manner, the 

 ends of the two cables which were fastened round his 

 neck, are brought forward to the outer end of the 

 outlet, where two tame elephants, which are trained 

 to the business, are waiting, and to them these cables 

 are made fast. After every thing is prepared and 

 ready, the door at the end of the passage is opened, 

 and the ropes that tied his legs to the palisades are 

 unfastened. 



If the elephant is not very formidable or unruly, it 

 is sufficient to place him lengthwise betwixt two large 

 trees, about thirty or forty feet distant from each 

 other, there to bind his legs in contact together, and 

 fasten them close to one of the trees with six or 

 seven turns of thick rope ; likewise to bind one fore 

 leg, to which greater liberty is given by the length 

 and slackness of the cordage. The two tame ele- 

 phants are then disengaged from the wild one, and 

 conducted back by the tail to take charge of another 

 captive. This is a very trying moment to the wild 

 elephant. While guided by the tuition, and soothed 

 by the society, of his subjugated brethren, he remains 

 tranquil and quiet, appearing to forget his sorrows, 

 and to gather fortitude under his sufferings ; but im- 

 mediately that his companions march away, finding 

 himself closely bound, a solitary and helpless pri- 

 soner, he is agitated with all the horrors of despair, 

 breaks out into a roaring which makes all the forest 

 tremble, and in the fury of his extravagant grief fre- 

 quently falls a sacrifice to the exertion which he 

 makes in trying to regain his liberty. During this 

 period, cocoa-nut leaves and plantain trees are 

 brought to him for food. In the agony of distress, 



he tosses them contemptuously away, or tramples 

 them with indignation under his feet. The cravings 

 of hunger, however, will after a while induce him to 

 eat, which he does with great reluctance at first, but 

 becomes gradually more resigned, and after the lapse 

 of a few hours he will feed very heartily. Whole 

 herds of elephants are taken captive in this manner ; 

 but occasionally a small party of hunters endeavour 

 to seize the males, which often sally forth from the 

 forests alone in search of richer provisions. In this 

 object the hunters are frequently successful, by 

 observing the following plan : The places where the 

 elephants feed are known to the hunters, they advance 

 towards them in the evening with four trained ele- 

 phants. When the nights are dark these stragglers 

 are discovered by the noise they make in cleaning 

 their food, by whisking and striking it against their 

 fore legs ; and by moonlight people can see them dis- 

 tinctly at some distance. When they have deter- 

 mined upon the particular elephant they mean to 

 secure, three of the trained females are conducted 

 silently and slowly by their drivers, at a moderate 

 distance from each other, near to the place where he 

 is feeding. These advance very cautiously, feeding 

 as they go along, and have the appearance of wild 

 elephants that have strayed from the forest. When 

 the male perceives them approaching, if he takes the 

 alarm, and is viciously inclined, he beats the ground 

 with his trunk, and makes a noise, showing evident 

 marks of his displeasure, and that he will not allow 

 them to approach near ; and, if they persist, he will 

 immediately attack and gore them with his tusks ; 

 for which reason they take care to retreat in good 

 time. But should he be amorously disposed, which 

 is generally the case, he allows the females to approach, 

 and sometimes even advances to meet them. If 

 from these appearances the hunters judge that he 

 will become their prize, they conduct two of the 

 females, one on each side, close to him, and make 

 them advance backwards, and press gently with their 

 posteriors against his neck and shoulders. The third 

 female then comes up, and places herself directly 

 across his tail. So far from thinking of any design, in 

 this situation, against his liberty, he begins to toy 

 with the females and caress them with his trunk. 

 While thus engaged, the fourth female is brought near 

 with ropes and proper assistants, who immediately 

 get under the belly of the third female, and put a 

 small cord round his hind legs. At this time, should 

 he move, it is easily broken, and if he takes no notice 

 of this slight confinement, nor appears suspicious of 

 what is going forward, the hunters then proceed to 

 tie his legs with a strong cord, which is passed alter- 

 nately by means of a forked stick and a sort of hook, 

 from the one leg to the other, as we have described 

 before. A very strong cable with a running noose, 

 sixty cubits long, is next put round each hind leg, 

 immediately above the cords, and these are secured in 

 their places by other cords tied round the legs above 

 them. It generally takes about twenty or thirty mi- 

 nutes inputting on these ropes.during which the utmost 

 silence is observed ; and the hunters who keep flat 

 upon the necks of the females, are covered with dark 

 coloured clothes, which serve to keep them warm, 

 and at the same time do not attract the notice of the 

 elephant. While the people are thus employed in 

 tying his legs, he sometimes caresses one and 

 sometimes the other of his seducers, examining 

 their beauties, and toying with them, by which his 



