THE ELEPHANT 259 



Roman arenas depleted that region, and the animal is now 

 never found North of the Sahara. 



From the very earliest ages of civilisation the Asiatic 

 Elephant was brought under the dominion of man. The 

 Greeks, when they invaded Persia, were filled with terror 

 at the Elephants in their war-trappings, but in later periods 

 made use of the animal in their various campaigns. In 

 India the Elephant was always recognised for its strength, 

 courage, sagacity, and generous qualities. Indian princes 

 estimated their power by the number of Elephants they 

 possessed, and in modern times British generals did not 

 hesitate to press the animal into service. Powerful and 

 hardy, no better beast exists for carrying war stores in 

 regions almost inaccessible to ordinary conveyance. Bear- 

 ing a load equal to that of sixteen bullocks, it can subsist 

 upon leaves, whereas horses and bullocks require large 

 amounts of fodder to be carried for their sustenance. The 

 short, broad feet of the Elephant are well adapted for pro- 

 gress in mountainous regions, the flat, cushion-like soles 

 enabling it to ascend or descend steep and difficult places 

 with great facility. 



At the battle of Goojerat, in the Punjab, in 1849, a 

 body of Elephants dragged 2o-pounder field-pieces to the 

 centre of the lines, where they were able to work such 

 execution as completely to break the power of the Sikhs. 

 Even in very recent years Elephants have transported 

 mountain-guns into districts that were otherwise inac- 

 cessible to artillery. 



Useful as Elephants may be in warfare, their employment 

 needs circumspection, as Rajah Sahib found to his cost 

 when he tried to take the crumbling walls of Arcot, behind 

 which Robert Clive and his small but heroic force were 

 playing the desperate game of Empire-making. In the 

 forefront of his attack Rajah placed a number of Elephants, 

 wearing heavy iron spiked helmets with which to batter 

 down the rotten gates. But the living battering-rams never 

 reached them ; they were received with such a withering 

 fire that the Elephants turned tail and ran through their 

 own lines with disastrous results. 



There is often much misunderstanding concerning the 



