246 THE ELEPHANT. 



of holding objects as the fingers of a man. He 

 lifts from the ground the smallest piece of money ; 

 he selects herbs and flowers, and gathers them one 

 by one ; he unties knots of rope, opens and shuts 

 gates, and, with his trunk, he grasps any body to 

 which it is applied so firmly that no force can tear 

 it from his gripe. 



As an organ of touch, the proboscis of the 

 elephant is exquisitely fine. Elephants sometimes 

 go blind, and, under that privation, the poor animal 

 can, not only collect its food and discriminate its 

 quality by means of this wonderful instrument, but 

 travel, without much difficulty, over irregular ground, 

 avoiding lumps and hollows, and stepping over 

 ditches. The creature, under such circumstances, 

 rarely touches the ground with his trunk ; but, pro- 

 jecting it forward as far as possible, lets the finger, 

 which is coiled inward to protect the nostrils, skim 

 along the surface, to the inequalities of which it 

 adjusts itself with wonderful exactness. 



With this organ the elephant collects his food, 

 liquid as well as solid. lie has no power to 

 apply his mouth (with the single exception of the 

 mode in which the young elephant sucks) to the 

 food to be taken ; and, therefore, whether he gather 

 the supply below or above his head, the substance is 

 introduced into his mouth by the inward flexure of 

 the trunk. 



Under these circumstances, it is little surprising 

 that the elephant, whether in a state of nature or 

 under the control of man, should invariably keep 

 this invaluable member as much out of harm's way 



