CHAPTER II. 
the skin. mucous and serous membranes, 
muscular system. 
The Skin. 
The skin. — In the wild state it is somewhat difficult to estimate 
the true colour of the elephant, as when met with they are 
generally bedaubed with various coloured clays or mud ; but in 
reality the true colour is a deep greyish black. In the domesticated 
animal it is certainly much darker, which is due to constant washing, 
grooming, anointing with oils, and the black colour is very often 
given by scrubbing with doh-nwe, a species of creeper (^s^c^). 
The looseness of the skin is familiar to all, and as is the case with 
many other animals it may be freely moved at will through the aid 
of a special muscle, the panniculns carnosuSj lying beneath it. The 
action of this muscle is frequently demonstrated when the creature 
is tormented by flies. Some elephants have a bad habit of shifting 
their gear, or load, by frequently bringing this m.uscle into play. 
The skin is of considerable thickness, but varies in different 
parts of the body. It nevertheless does not prevent its being highly 
sensitive — a matter of common remark — mosquitoes even causing 
extreme irritation, and it is this fact which explains why in the 
natural state we find these animals habitually besmeared with mud. 
The functions of the skin are many. In the first place, it affords 
a protective covering to the tissues which build up the structure of 
the body. 
As before remarked, though the skin is very thick, it is extremely 
sensitive. It is owing to this thickness that abscesses do not 
readily come to a head and burst. 
In health the temperature of the skin is of a uniformly even 
warmth ; it is free from scurf, dark in colour, and pliable to the 
touch. Embedded within its substance are various organs with 
special functions to perform. 
(i) Hairs. — These are bristly in character, stiff to the touch, 
and firmly rooted, and are more abundant in certain localities. In 
the adult they are numerous on the forehead, lower lip, upper lip, 
orifices of the ears, and end of the tail. On the latter they are 
larger and stiffer in character, and grow from the anterior and 
