-popular HSirtfanarg of &mmatctt Mature. 217 



at the head of an elephant will show the 

 thickness and strength of the trunk at its 

 insertion ; and the massy arched bones of 

 the face and thick muscular neck are ad- 

 mirably adapted for supporting and working 

 this powerful and wonderful instrument." 



Elephants are naturally gregarious ; large 

 troops assembling together, and living in a 

 kind of society. The skin of the Elephant 

 is of a deep ash-coloured brown ; but in 

 some parts of India it is said to be found, 

 thougli rarely, of a white or cream colour. 

 It sometimes arrives at the height of twelve 

 or fourteen feet, though the more general 

 height seems to be about nine or ten feet. 

 These animals are commonly found in the 

 midst of shady woods, being equally averse 

 to extreme heat as to cold : they delight in 

 cool spots, near rivers, and, as they swim 

 with great ease, they frequently bathe in the 

 water. Their general food consists of the 

 tender branches of various trees, as well as 

 of grains and fruits ; on which account it is 

 that their incursions are so much dreaded in 

 i j plantations of various kinds, where they are 

 ' ! said occasionally to commit the most violent 

 depredations ; at the same time injuring the 

 crops by trampling the ground with their 

 huge feet. 



The wild Elephants of Ceylon, which are 

 much esteemed, live in small groups or fami- 

 lies. In wandering from place to place, the 

 males, who are furnished with the largest 

 tusks, put themselves at the head, and are 

 the first to face every danger. In swimming 



over any large river, they lead the van, and 

 seek a proper landing-place : next follow 

 the young Elephants, clinging to each other 

 by means of their trunks, whilst the re- 

 mainder of the full-grown bring up the rear. 

 In all ages these animals have been eagerly 

 hunted ; and some of the arts which have 

 been employed to kill or take them merit 

 attention. The Hottentots in South Africa 

 shoot them with tin balls : this chase is 

 attended with considerable danger ; for, 

 with every precaution that can be used, the 

 sagacity of the Elephant often detects the 

 approach of the hunter, who, in tliis case, 

 will, in all probability, fall a victim to the 

 rage of the animal, unless he can instantly 

 disable him. In the island of Sumatra, the 

 inhabitants split sugar-canes (of which food 

 the Elephant is very fond), and impregnate 

 them with poison. In Abyssinia they are 

 pursued by hunters on horseback, in the 



I following manner : Two men, perfectly 

 ! naked, mount the same horse ; the hinder- 

 most is armed with a broadsword, the lower 

 part of which is covered with cord, and the 

 remainder is exceedingly sharp. In this 

 manner they pursue the Ejephants, and, 

 having singled out one, they irritate him to 

 attack them, when they ride up elos-to him, 

 and the armed man slips from the horse on 

 ! the offside, and, whilst the Elephant's atten- 

 tion is engaged with the horse, he divides 

 the tendons of his foot with a single blow, 

 and thus disables him, when he is dispatched 

 by lances. 



They are also taken alive in pitfalls, or 

 are driven into enclosures ; in either case 

 they are fed scantily, though regularly, for 

 a few days, when tame Elephants are em- 

 ployed to engage their attention till they 

 can be tied fast to a tree ; after they have 

 become somewhat dispirited, they are led 

 away between two tame ones, and put under 

 the care of keepers, who gradually bring 

 them into subjection, more, however, by 

 caresses and soothing, than by coercion. 

 When tamed, they become the most gentle 

 and obedient of all domestic animals, and, 

 in most cases, are exceedingly fond of their 

 keepers, and soon learn to distinguish the 

 various tones of the human voice, as expres- 

 sive of anger, approbation, or command. 

 The domesticated Elephant performs more 

 i work than six horses, but at the same time 

 j requires much care, and a plentiful supply 

 i of food. He is generally fed with rice, either 

 ; raw or boiled, and mixed with water. To 

 keep him in full vigour, a hundred pounds 

 of this food is said to be required daily, 

 besides fresh herbage to cool him ; and he 

 must be led to the water twice or thrice a 

 day to bathe. His daily consumption of 

 water as drink is about forty gallons. 



It would be difficult to enumerate all the 

 services of these useful animals, so varied 

 are they, and so valuable where strength is 

 necessary. They are employed in carrying 

 burdens on their bodies, necks, and even in 

 : their mouths, by means of a rope, the end of 

 which they hold fast with their teeth ; they 

 load a boat with amazing dexterity, care- 

 fully keeping all the articles dry, and dis- 

 posing them where they ought to be placed. 

 In propelling wheel carriages heavily laden 

 upon a declivity, they push them forward 

 with their forehead, and support them with 

 their knees. In dragging beams of wood 

 along the ground, they remove obstacles or 

 elevate the ends of the beams so as to clear 

 them. Before the invention of fire-arms, 

 they were used in war by many nations of 

 antiquity ; and they are still employed in 

 the East in dragging artillery over moun- 

 tains. In many parts of India, Elephants 

 are made the executioners of justice ; for 

 they will with their trunks either break the 

 limbs of a criminal, trample him to death, 

 or pierce him with their tusks, as they may 

 be directed. The Elephant has been long 

 made the companion of the sports of the 

 Orientalist in the great hunting parties ; 

 and from the same early period has been 

 made to minister to the wanton and cruel 

 pleasures of Eastern princes, by being stimu- 



