118 THE VAST. 



fully measured, he did not exceed ten feet. The Ceylon 

 specimens rarely exceed nine feet ; yet Wolf says, he saw 

 one taken near Jaffna, which measured twelve feet one 

 inch, of course to the arch of the back. 



The elephants of the farther peninsula much excel those 

 of India and Ceylon, perhaps because they are less dis- 

 turbed. The skeleton of one in the museum at St Peters- 

 burg, which was sent to Peter the Great by the Shah of 

 Persia, measures sixteen feet and a half in height ; and 

 probably this is the highest authentic instance on record. 



The African elephant is perhaps not inferior to that of 

 Pegu. Mr Pringle, in a very graphic picture, has described 

 an unexpected rencontre with an enormous elephant in an 

 African valley. " We halted, and surveyed him for a few 

 minutes in silent admiration and astonishment. He was, 

 indeed, a mighty and magnificent creature. The two 

 engineer officers, who were familiar with the appearance 

 of the elephant in his wild state, agreed that the animal 

 before us was at least fourteen feet in height." Major 

 Denham in his expedition into Central Africa, met with 

 some which he guessed to be sixteen feet high ; but one 

 which he saw killed, and which he characterises as " an 

 immense fellow," measured twelve feet six to the back.* 

 Fossil remains of an elephant have been discovered at 

 Jubbalpore, which measure fifteen feet to the shoulder. 



I need only advert to other colossal quadrupeds, the 



* Sir E. Tennent, (Ceylon, ii., p. 291,) quoting this account, says " nine 

 feet six inches ; " but this is a mis-reading. It was nine feet six inches 

 to the hip-bone ; and three feet more to the back. 



