292 WILD ANIMALS. 



nine others. In 1852, while south of New Orleans, he killed his 

 keeper, known as ' Long John,' whose successor, called ' Frenchy,' 

 shared the same fate near Houston, Texas, in 1855. A third 

 keeper, Stewart Craven, was killed in 1860, near Cedar Rapids, 

 Iowa ; the fourth, Ben Williams, was sent to his last account at 

 Philadelphia in 1867; and the fifth, named McDewett, in Ohio, 

 in 1869, completed the illustrious roll of ' Romeo's ' victims. 

 Although from the affectionate nature of the animal there can be 

 no doubt he bitterly mourned the loss of the keepers whom in his 

 hasty moments he destroyed, yet his cheerful temperament enabled 

 him to survive sorrows that would have crushed more sensitive 

 elephants ; indeed his playfulness sometimes exceeded the limits 

 of convenience. In the winter of 1868 he alarmed the inhabitants 

 of Chicago by tearing to pieces the building in which he was con- 

 fined, on the site of the present City Hall. On this occasion a 

 cannon was brought out to cope with him, but he was fortunately 

 recaptured before any further damage was done. His left eye 

 was, however, shot out in 1865 near Philadelphia, and his hide 

 bore the scars of numerous bullets and red-hot iron used to 

 subdue him at various times when he insisted on committing 

 depredations. He stood 11 feet 2^ inches in height, and is sup- 

 posed to have been 100 years old." 



In India individual animals have killed more men in their day 

 than " Romeo " did, but out of Asia he was probably accountable 

 for more deaths than any other of his species of which there is 

 any record. But sundry elephants that have been used for 

 exhibition purposes, both in England and on the Continent, have 

 been man-slayers. 



Judging from the accounts given in old newspapers, our grand- 

 fathers experienced some difficulty in destroying these " monstrous 

 creatures" as they were called. An animal that had belonged 

 to the King of Wurtemberg was destroyed about sixty years 

 ago in Venice — where he tried to kill his keeper, and did succeed 

 in killing another man, whom he threw down with his trunk, and 

 trampled to death. In order to execute this murderer, it was neces- 

 sary to employ the agency of " 150 musket-balls and three cannons." 

 In 1820 a performing elephant which had previously been exhibited 



