ELEPHANTS 78 
a\select crew of men, I rehearsed all the details of 
what we were going to do and how we were going 
to do it. Finally, I ordered food placed in the en- 
closure and the bars drawn. The nearest elephant 
saw the food, sniffed, flapped his ears and walked 
in. Breaking commenced. 
As soon as the elephant enters the small enclosure, 
the bars behind him are slipped. He eats the food 
so eagerly that he does not realize quite what is 
happening and the men put the knee- and foot- 
hobbles on him. These allow him about one quarter 
of his normal step. Rattan ropes are fastened to 
his feet and drawn out through the bars; his trunk 
is secured so that he car do no damage with it. 
There is a great deal of misunderstanding about 
what an elephant can do with his trunk. It is a 
sensitive organ and he never uses it for heavy labor, 
but he can strike a terrific blow with it. I have seen 
many a man’s ribs and arms broken when he ne- 
glected to take the proper precautions. In approach~ 
ing a dangerous elephant, a man should come up 
sideways, with the nearer arm folded to protect 
the ribs. Then, if the elephant strikes, he should 
try to catch the blow on the upper part of the arm, 
where there is the most flesh to protect the bone. 
Such a blow never knocks a man flat; it sends him 
spinning like a top until he tumbles over. 
The elephant uses both his trunk and his lungs in 
calling, and he has a large variety of sounds and 
combinations of sound with which to express him- 
