5 o ANIMALS OF NO IMPORTANCE. 



contemplative attitude, and did that perfectly well in the 

 morning which he had failed to do the day before. Almost 

 every elephant, according to Mutianus, understands as much 

 of the Indian language as relates to themselves. 



If we may believe the learned Abbe, elephants have very 

 decided notions of what is right and what is wrong. They 

 have, for instance, a particular horror of adultery. In proof 

 of this some stories from ^Elian are quoted. One faithful 

 monster having caught his master's wife in adultery, went 

 and stuck her and her accomplice through with his tusks, 

 to show the husband his zeal and his fidelity. Another ele- 

 phant went one better. Having killed the adulterers, he 

 threw a covering over them in order to conceal, if possible, 

 the sin from the public ! Indeed, if we may trust the Abbe, 

 the versatile elephant had once a very nasty habit of interfer- 

 ing in his master's domestic affairs. There was once an 

 Indian from whose wife " years had taken the power of pleas- 

 ing." The husband got disgusted and made away with 

 her by cutting her throat and secretly burying her in the 

 elephant's stable. Having performed this pleasant task, 

 he took unto him another wife. The elephant fearing 

 that she too might not wear well and have her throat cut, 

 " took her up in his trunk and carried her to the grave of 

 her predecessor. He opened it himself, and showed his new 

 mistress the carcase of the former one. He made her look 

 upon it with attention, and showed her by that act of cruelty 

 and barbarity what was the character of him whom she 

 had chosen as her husband. " Unfortunately the Abbe 

 does not tell us how the elephant managed to open 

 up the grave, but he expressly tells us that the lady chose 

 her husband. 



After that of the elephant, the account of the rhinoceros 

 falls rather flat. This creature does nothing clever except 

 sharpen its horn against a stone. It, however, has wings 

 like those of a bat. The horn of the rhinoceros, the Abbe 

 informs us, is much employed by the Indian kings because 

 " it sweats at the approach of any poison whatever." Even 



