PACHYDERM ATA. 147 



above the surface. There are various modes of capturing these 

 animals. One of these is by decoy Elephants, which are well 

 trained to their work. With two of these decoys, the hunters 

 proceed into the woods. The females advance quietly, and by 

 their blandishments so occupy the attention of any unfortunate 

 male that they meet, that the hunters are enabled to tie his legs 

 together and fasten him to a tree. His treacherous companions 

 then forsake him. At length he is subdued by hunger and the 

 fatigue of efforts to free himself from his bonds, and then the 

 hunters drive him home between their two tame Elephants. 

 When once captured, he is easily trained. 



When in captivity, maternal affection does not seem strong in 

 the elephant; but in the wild state, the animal has given striking 

 illustrations of such affection, as well as of marital and filial 

 love. The young animal is exceedingly playful. It becomes 

 mature when between 18 and 24 years of age, and usually lives 

 to a great age; Aristotle says, "more than 200 years;" it has 

 sometimes lived even more than 400 years. 



The Elephant appears deeply susceptible of influence from 

 kindness. The natives in the East are wont to address him with 

 persuasive and endearing epithets, which he seems to compre- 

 hend and by which he is stimulated to exertion. Sometimes his 

 actions and display of comprehension appear almost the result of 

 a reasoning process. An officer who served in India remarks, 

 "I have myself often seen the wife of a ?nohont, (for the officers 

 often take their families with them to the camp,) give a baby in 

 charge to an Elephant while she went on some business, and 

 have been highly interested in observing the sagacity and care 

 of the unwieldy nurse." 



Memory, which, as well as instinct, is given to animals for 

 their well being, seems to have great strength in the Elephant. 

 An illustration of this remark is given by Mr. Corse, in the 

 Phil. Tran., and quoted by Swainson in his "Habits and In- 

 stincts of Animals," "An Elephant which had escaped, arid 

 which was subsequently captured in company with a herd of 

 wild Elephants, after an interval of eighteen months, was recog- 

 nized by one of the drivers. When any person approached the 

 animal, he appeared wild and outrageous as the other animals, 

 and attempted to strike the person approaching him with his trunk, 

 until an old hunter, riding boldly up to him on a tame Elephant, 

 ordered him to lie down, pulling him by the ear at the same time, 

 upon which the animal seemed quite taken by surprise, and in- 

 stantly obeyed the word of command with as much quickness as 

 the ropes with which he was tied permitted, uttering, at the same 



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