ELEPHANTS. 
54i 
Pitfalls. 
Chasing - . 
one by one by relays. When the wild tusker is sound asleep, the females close up 
around him, upon which two of the mahouts slip off, and tie his hind-legs securely 
together. Sometimes this is all that is then done, but in other cases he is made 
fast to a tree. When awakened, the male, if tied to a tree, makes every effort to 
escape, but in vain; while, when his legs are merely hobbled, he makes off in the 
best way he can. In the latter case he is followed by the females until exhausted, 
when he is made fast to a neighbouring tree. The efforts made by elephants thus 
caught to escape from their trammels, frequently produce such injuries as to result 
in the death of a large percentage of the number. 
The pitfall mode is chiefly or entirely employed by natives, and 
is a barbarous one, owing to the frequency with which the bones of 
the animals are broken or dislocated in the fall. To obviate this a bar is usually 
fixed across the middle of the pit, which, although itself broken, somewhat mitigates 
the shock of the fall. The pits are about fifteen feet in depth, by ten and a half in 
length, and seven and a half in width; this relatively small area being intended to 
hinder the animal from digging his way out with his tusks. It is remarkable that 
an animal which displays such caution in venturing over bridges and other artificial 
structures as does the Indian elephant, should so readily fall into these pits. 
The fourth method of capture employed in India is by far the 
most exciting, and is in fact a simple chase. Three or four fast tame 
elephants, each carrying a mahout on its neck, a nooser kneeling on a small pad on 
the back, and a driver near the tail, are fitted with a girth round the body, attached 
to which is a rope with a running noose. When the wild elephants are approached, 
they make off at their topmost speed, closely followed by the tame ones. Two of 
the tame elephants select a single wild animal, and urged to their utmost speed by 
the blows of a spiked mallet wielded by the drivers behind, perhaps eventually 
come alongside of it. When this takes place, the nooses are thrown, and generally 
encircle the victim by the neck. The tame elephants are then checked, but if this is 
done too suddenly the captive may be choked; indeed, the whole party are liable 
to injury from being dragged down ravines or other precipitous places; and the 
work is at all times very harassing to the tame animals employed. This method, 
which is only employed in Bengal and Nipal, has the further disadvantage that 
only the less fleet, and therefore inferior, animals can be captured by its means. 
In Ceylon wild elephants are noosed by a couple of hunters on 
foot, who with marvellous skill encircle the hind-legs of an animal 
running away from them, and make fast the end of the trailing rope to a tree. 
An immature female elephant is worth about £150 (we presume 
counting the rupee at its nominal value of two shillings), while good 
working females will fetch from £200 to £300. Tuskers are, however, far more 
valuable, ranging from £800 to £1500 or £1600, or even more if all their “points” 
be perfect. 
Uses of The domesticated elephant is largely employed in India for the 
Elephants, transport of heavy camp-equipage, for dragging timber to the rivers, 
and in lieu of horses for artillery; and is of especial value in traversing districts 
where roads are either wanting, or are so bad as to be impassable for other animals 
when laden. Elephants may be employed either as beasts of burden or of draught; 
Noosing. 
Value. 
