iel HISTORY OF 



vides for the animal's necessities and comforts, but it also serves 

 for its ornament and defence. 



But though the elephant be thus admirably supplied by its 

 trunk, yet with respect to the rest of its conformation, it is un- 

 wieldy and helpless. The neck is so short that it can scarcely 

 turn the head, and must wheel round in order to discover an 

 enemy from behind. The hunters that attack it upon that quar- 

 ter generally thus escape the effects of its indignation ; and find 

 time to renew their assaults while the elephant is turning to 

 face them. The legs are, indeed, not so inflexible as the neck, 

 yet they are very stiflf, and bend not without difficult}'. Those 

 before seem to be longer than the hinder ; but upon being mea- 

 sured, are found to be something shorter. The joints, by which 

 they bend, are nearly in the middle, like the knee of a man ; and 

 the great bulk which they are to support, makes their flexure un- 

 gainly. While the elephant is young, it bends the legs to lie 

 down or to rise ; but when it grows old, or sickly, this is not 

 performed without human assistance, and it becomes, conse- 

 quently, so inconvenient, that the animal chooses to sleep 

 standing. The feet upon which these massy columns are sup- 

 ported, form a base scarcely broader than the legs they sustain. 

 They are divided into five toes, which are covered beneath the 

 skin, and none of which appear to the eye ; a kind of protube- 

 ranee like claws are only observed, which vary in number from 

 three to five. The apparent claws vary ; the internal toes are 

 constantly the same. The sole of the foot is furnished with a 

 skin as thick and hard as horn, and which completely covers the 

 whole under-part of the foot. 



To the rest of the elephant's encumbrances may be added its 

 enormous tusks, which are unserviceable for chewing, and are 

 only weapons of defence. These, as the animal grows old, be- 

 come so heavy, that it is sometimes obliged to make holes in 

 the walls of its stall to rest them in, and ease itself of the fa- 

 tigue of their support. It is well-known to what aif amaz- 

 ing size these tusks grow ; they are two in number, proceeding 



rare with wliich the elephant endeavours to put his trunk out of danger, 

 makes him extremely cautious of usinf( it as a weapon. He rarely strikes 

 with it; t2iough he will frequently throw elods and stones with it at ob- 

 jects which he dislikes. Elephants often thus alUtk hogs, casting the.i 

 laissiles with tolerable force and precisioa 



