88 The Life of an Elephant 



beast, were lodged in the closest proximity to 

 those who enjoyed residence in these buildings, 

 palatial only in their size. 



Slung from the ship like any bale of goods, 

 our elephant found himself standing on the jetty 

 at dead of night, suffering still from the effects 

 of the sea voyage, reeling slightly as he walked. 

 He passed through the sleeping town, where 

 the daylight traffic was too congested to allow 

 the risk of frightening horses and bullocks, 

 and set his face to the north-west on his long 

 march up-country to the market where he 

 was to be sold. As he followed the broad road 

 with its avenues hundreds of miles in length, 

 he passed into a cooler and drier atmosphere at 

 each march. Strolling twenty to thirty miles 

 each day during the freshness of the early 

 morning and late evening, fed and looked after 

 with every care, he found life for the next 

 month or two pleasanter than he had ex- 

 perienced since his capture. The countries he 

 passed through were different in all respects 

 to those in which the elephant's youth had 

 been passed. There the forest was supreme. 



