SHIPPING WILD ANIMALS 93 
delay in disposing of the animals meant a great 
sacrifice of either money or health. 
The first five elephants, together with attendants 
and food were waiting back of the sheds at Tan- 
jong-Pagar, the docks at Singapore, to be put 
aboard. At the last moment the chief officer came 
with the message that the captain refused to take 
them. 
I went to the captain’s cabin and found a stout, 
red-faced and apparently good-natured English- 
man. He was just out of his bath, wearing pajamas 
and idling about in his cabin until the ship was 
ready to get under way. I thought it a good time 
to approach him, and I took care to be quite calm 
and cool about it, although I was raging inside. 
I showed him my receipt and the bill of lading 
given me by the agent. He replied that the agent 
was not captain of the ship; he didn’t care what 
agreement the agent had made. So long as he was 
captain, he’d run his ship to suit himself, and all 
agents could go to the devil, for all he cared. And, 
moreover, he’d not carry elephants—not for any one. 
I explained my position and told him that it would 
mean a great financial loss to me if I failed on my 
contract to deliver the elephants. 
“Look here, Mayer,” he said, “I’ve handled ele- 
phants at Calcutta and I’ve always had a lot of 
trouble with them. If I load these elephants, it 
means that I have to rig up extra gear, and I won’t 
do it.” 
