604 MODE OF MEASURING ELEPHANTS. 



the young one, the meat not being at all necessary at that time ; 

 but it is right to add that I did not feel sick when my own blood 

 was up the day before. We ought, perhaps, to judge those deeds 

 more leniently in which we ourselves have no temptation to 

 engage. Had I not been previously guilty of doing the very same 

 thing, I might have prided myself on superior humanity when I 

 experienced the nausea in viewing my men kill these two. 



The elephant first killed was a male, not full grown ; his height 

 at the withers, 8 feet 4 inches ; circumference of the fore foot, 

 44 inches x 2 = 7 feet 4 inches. The female was full grown, and 

 measured in height 8 feet 8 inches ; circumference of the fore 

 foot, 48 inches x 2 = 8 feet (96 inches). We afterward found that 

 full-grown male elephants of this region ranged in height at the 

 withers from 9 feet 9 inches to 9 feet 10 inches, and the circum- 

 ference of the fore foot to be 4 feet 9£ inches x 2 = 9 feet 7 inches. 

 These details are given because the general rule has been observed 

 that twice the circumference of the impression made by the fore 

 foot on the ground is the height of the animal. The print on the 

 ground, being a little larger than the foot itself, would thus seem 

 to be an accurate mode of measuring the size of any elephant that 

 has passed ; but the above measurements show that it is applicable 

 only to full-grown animals. The greater size of the African ele- 

 phant in the south would at once distinguish it from the Indian 

 one ; but here they approach more nearly to each other in bulk, 

 a female being about as large as a common Indian male. But 

 the ear of the African is an external mark which no one will mis- 

 take even in a picture. That of the female now killed was 4 feet 

 5 inches in depth, and 4 feet in horizontal breadth. I have seen 

 a native creep under one so as to be quite covered from the rain. 

 The ear of the Indian variety is not more than a third of this size. 

 The representation of elephants on ancient coins shows that this 

 important characteristic was distinctly recognized of old. Indeed, 

 Cuvier remarked that it was better known by Aristotle than by 

 BufFon. 



Having been anxious to learn whether the African elephant 

 is capable of being tamed, through the kindness of my friend 

 Admiral Smythe I am enabled to give the reader conclusive evi- 

 dence on this point. In the two medals furnished from his work, 

 "A descriptive Catalogue of his Cabinet of Roman and Imperial 



