SECT. XVI. 6. OF INSTINCT. 171 



The elephant is indeed endued with a fine fenfe 

 of feeling at the extremity of his probofcis, -and 

 hence has acquired much more accurate ideas of 

 touch and of light than moft other creatures. The 

 two following inftances of the fagacity of thefe ani- 

 mals may entertain the reader, as they^were told me 

 by fome gentlemen of diftinct obfervatiori, and un- 

 doubted veracity, who had been much converfant 

 xvith our eaflern fettlements. Firft, the elephants 

 that are ufed to carry the baggage of our armies, 

 are put each under the care of one of the natives 

 of Indoftan, and whilft himfelf and his wife go into 

 the woods to collect leaves and branches of trees for 

 his food, they fix him to the ground by a length of 

 chain, and frequently leave a child yet unable to 

 walk, under his protection : and the intelligent ani- 

 mal not only defends it, but as it creeps about, 

 when it arrives near the extremity of his chain, he 

 wraps his trunk gently round its body, and brings 

 it again into the centre of his circle. Secondly, 

 the traitor elephants are taught to walk on a narrow 

 path between two pit-falls, which are covered with 

 turf, and then to go into the woods, and to feduce 

 the wild elephants to come that way, who fall into 

 thefe wells, whilft he pafles fafe between them : 

 and it is univerfaliy observed, that thofe wild ele- 

 phants that efcape the fnare, purfue the traitor with 

 the utinoft vehemence, and if they can overtake 

 him, which fometimes happens, they always beat 

 him to death. 



The monkey has a hand well enough adapted for 

 the fenfe of touch, which contributes to his great 

 facility of imitation ; but in taking- objects with his 

 hands, as a (lick or an apple, he puts his thumb 

 on the fame fide of them with his fingers, inflead 

 of counteracting the preffure of his fingers with it : 

 from this neglect he is much flower in acquiring the 

 figures of objects, as he is lefs able to determine 



VOL. I. N the 



