64 Wild Beasts 



Thus it happens that wild elephants are the most formida- 

 ble objects of pursuit known to exist, and that the majority 

 of those held in durance exhibit dangerous outbreaks of 

 temper. When an elephant is vicious, he displays capa- 

 bilities in the way of evil such as none of his kind, when 

 left to themselves, have ever been known to manifest in 

 the direction of virtue. A " rogue " is the most terrible 

 of wild beasts ; the captive tusker who has determined 

 upon murder finds no being but man, who in the prose- 

 cution of his design is so patient, so self-contained, so 

 deceitful, and so deadly. It is idle to say, speaking of 

 the relations between elephants and men, that the good 

 qualities of the former greatly predominate, since if it had 

 been otherwise, no association between them would have 

 been possible — they could not have inhabited the same 

 regions. 



The concluding pages may, perhaps, serve to show how 

 far thi^ sketch of the elephant's character is compatible 

 with facts. 



Charles John Andersson ("The Lion and the Ele- 

 phant " ) observes that, " whether or not the elephant be 

 the harmless creature he is represented by many, certain 

 it is that to the sportsman he is the most formidable. of all 

 those beasts, the lion not excepted, that roam the African 

 wilds ; and few there are who make the pursuit of him a 

 profession, that do not, sooner or later, come to grief of 

 some kind." Being social animals, there is a certain sym- 

 pathy and affection between members of the same family ; 

 but while striking instances of this are recorded, the bulk 

 of evidence tends the other way. 



