148 
SCENES IN INDIA. 
the mahoots have little difficulty in persuading their 
charges to retire peaceably from the scene of con- 
tention. 
The engraving represents the King of Oude and 
his company looking from the balcony of a bungalo 
upon the struggle between two favourite elephants. 
It gives a very accurate idea of the manner in which 
these gigantic animals assault each other. They are 
supposed just to have commenced the encounter. 
The dust raised by their mighty struggles occasionally 
shrouds them from the sight of the spectators ; while 
the din and confusion produced by the shouts of at- 
tendants, and the thronging of so great a multitude, 
many of whom climb over the bamboo palisades and 
drop into the area within, altogether baffles description. 
I remember once seeing, at an entertainment of this 
kind, three wild buffaloes driven into the arena against 
an elephant. In order to render them the more 
fierce, crackers were fastened to their tails. During 
the explosion of these, the terrified animals ran to and 
fro as if in a state of frenzy, and one of them charged 
the elephant, which stood in a corner of the square, 
with the blind and misguided fury of madness. The 
colossal creature watched his victim as it plunged des- 
perately forward, calmly awaiting its approach with 
his head depressed, and the point of his tusks brought 
to a level with the shoulders of his advancing foe. 
The buffalo rushed onward, and was almost instantly 
impaled ; the elephant casting the writhing body from 
his tusks, and then coolly crushing it with his fore 
feet. 
The two other buffaloes, having now somewhat re- 
