ELEPHANTS 



order and control of a creature so much his inferior in size 

 and strength as a human being. 



At the present time the most cruel and -wonton destruc- 

 tion of these wonderful animals is being carried out in 

 Africa instead of capturing, taming, and training them to 

 work as carriers, and by these means reduce the necessity 

 of employing slave-labour ; ten pack elephants would carry 

 merchandise equal to three hundred native carriers. If 

 Africa is to become a civilized country the sooner this 

 subject is taken up the better, before it is too late. It 

 was said and thought that the African elephant could not 

 be tamed and that the animal would not live in captivity. 

 All these old notions are now looked upon as fables. 

 Numbers of African elephants have of late years been 

 imported into Europe, among others the celebrated 

 "Jumbo," probably the largest elephant ever seen in 

 Europe. His docility and good temper rendered him the 

 pet of thousands, but, like all male elephants when they 

 are nearly full grown, " Jumbo " at a certain season and 

 for a time became troublesome and required strict and 

 sometimes rather severe treatment. It is well known in 

 India and wherever elephants are kept that this is neces- 

 sary, but in this country anything that could be discovered 

 as cruel treatment would at once be taken up by persons 

 who are perfectly ignorant of the subject, and their stupid 

 interference would expose the people in charge of the 

 animals to be condemned for carrying out the only means 

 of preventing the animal doing mischief during the time 

 the restless fit lasted. 



The destruction of thousands of these valuable and 

 useful animals for the ivory alone, ought to raise a strong 

 protest against such cruel slaughter. There is, it is well 

 known, a determination on the part of the native carriers 

 to prevent the use of elephants as far as they have any 



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