268 THE ELEPHANT. 



unless by hauling him out with their trunks, it 

 would not be easy to conjecture ; and in corrobora- 

 tion of this supposition, I found, on examining the 

 spot myself, that the edges of the trench were deeply 

 indented with numerous impressions, as if the other 

 elephants had stationed themselves on either side, 

 some of them kneeling, and others on their feet, 

 and had thus, by their united efforts, and probably 

 after many failures, hoisted their unlucky brother 

 out of the pit." 



It is here to be remarked that full-grown male 

 elephants seldom tumble into a pit-fall, whilst fe- 

 males, on the contrary, are not vmfrequently found 

 engulphed. This is not attributable to less sagacity 

 on the part of the latter, but may probably be thus 

 explained : The male, in the full consciousness of 

 his superior strength, stands in no dread of other 

 denizens of the forest, and has only to guard against 

 subterraneous dangers. Accordingly, he invariably 

 carries his trunk near to, or actually touching, the 

 ground, and, by means of this exquisite organ of 

 smell and touch, is enabled to discover the toils in 

 time to avoid them. The female, on the other hand, 

 who is often accompanied by her young, and is 

 naturally anxious for their safety, generally car- 

 ries her proboscis in a somewhat elevated position, 

 which, though it enables her to discover the skulk- 

 ing hyasna, or other enemies of her offspring, ex- 

 poses her to be precipitated into the toils. 



Again, it is positively asserted, by the Bush- 

 men and other natives who are accustomed to en- 

 trap elephants, that those wily animals, when they 



