TO THE COURT OF AVA. 
535 
four, five, or six young ones,—some not more 
than a month, and others between three and 
four years old. Among these animals the in¬ 
tercourse of the sexes goes on exactly as among 
other quadrupeds. There seems to be no foun¬ 
dation whatever for the pretended delicacy 
w r hich has been ascribed to them: it is, in 
reality, a romance of European origin. In 
addition to the testimony of many natives, I 
have on this subject the assurance of two 
Europeans, who have lived for years in Ava. 
I may add, that the courage and sagacity of 
this animal have been nearly as much exagge¬ 
rated as its modesty. Its bulk, its strength, 
and its trunk, are its great recommendations, 
especially the latter. If man has been called 
the wisest of animals, because he possesses 
hands ; the elephant may, with as much truth, 
be called the wisest of quadrupeds, because he 
possesses a trunk. But for this instrument, 
and its great strength, I think it doubtful 
whether it would be ranked higher in intellec¬ 
tual endowments than a despised animal of the 
same natural family,—the hog. 
The best elephants belonging to his Burman 
Majesty are procured in the mountainous parts 
of the country, and those of the plains are 
said to be inferior in strength, symmetry, and 
