1868.J Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. 129 



three or four herds often join together ; and when a female is in heat, a 

 male joins them, otherwise the males remain apart. 



Often a large male is seen attended by three or four smaller ones. 



Males, when with the herd, never help to defend the others from any 

 outward attack, but are generally the first to run. 



When rivers are dry, wild elephants often scoop out little pools in 

 the sand in which the water remains ; this I have seen myself, and I 

 have lately heard of elephants damming up a stream with boulders 

 and sand, so as to keep a good supply of water for themselves. 



It is a mistake shooting elephants to prevent their devastating the 

 crops ; shooting only breaks up the herds and disperses them over a 

 large space, thereby increasing the amount of damage done. 



I may observe that though the elephants of the countries I have 

 named, all possess distinctive features of their own, still in every 

 country you find elephants of all kinds, thus, though the " Mirga- 

 band" is characteristic of Assam, nevertheless I have seen animals 

 equal to the Jynteea kind caught in Upper Assam ; I have also lately 

 seen a Kumaon elephant exactly resembling a Chittagong one. This 

 remark does not, however, apply to the Central Provinces, as the 

 elephants there are all of one kind, and seem to me totally dis- 

 tinct from those found in any other part of the Continent of India. 

 Midnapore, Vlth March, 1868. 



Mr. Ball said :— 



" During the past season when engaged in a geological examination 

 of the hilly country which separates Manbhoom from Dhalbhoom and 

 Singhbhoom, I have frequently, on the tops of hills and in the depths 

 of the jungles, met with traces of wild elephants. The period of the 

 elephants' stay in that part of the country is altogether dependent on 

 the rice crop ; and as this had been cut about a fortnight or three 

 weeks before the time of my visit, I missed seeing the elephants them- 

 selves, but found that much might be learned of their habits from an 

 examination of their tracks. 



" The natives say that a herd of at least 30 individuals come up 

 every year from the S. E. (Satbhoom) and, while the rice is available, 

 spread themselves along the range of hills of which Dulma (3047 feet) 

 is the culminating point. Thence they nightly make descents on 

 the crops of the neighbouring villages, causing great . loss to the 



