457 
E L E P H A S. 
flie phara, dools, See. are put oh in fucceffion, in the 
fame manner as on the goondah, only that here the people 
are in greater fecurity. While thefe ropes are making fa ft, 
the other hunters are careful not to go too near, but keep 
on the outfide of the palifade, and divert his attention 
as much as they can, by fupplying him with grafts, and 
fometimes with plantain-leaves and fugar canes, of which 
he is remarkably fond, by prefenting a (lick, giving him 
hopes of catching it, or by gently ftriking or tickling his 
probofeis. He frequently, however, feize's the ropes with 
his trunk, and endeavours to break them, particularly 
thofe with which his feet are tied, and'fometimes tries 
to bite them through with his grinders; but the hunters 
then goad him with (harpened bamboos, or light fpears, 
fo as to make him quit his hold. Thofe who are em¬ 
ployed in putting the ropes round his body, hand above 
him, on a fmall kind of platform, confiding of a few bars 
run acrofs through the openings of the palilades, and, as 
an elephant cannot fee any thing that is above, and rather 
behind his head, they are very little incommoded by him, 
although he appears to fmell them, and endeavours to 
reach them with his trunk. When the whole apparatus 
is properly fecured, the ends of the two cables (dools), 
whieh were faftened round his neck, are brought forward 
to the end of the roomde, where two female elephants 
are waiting; and to them thefe cables are made faft. 
When every thing is ready, the door, at the end of the 
outlet, is opened, the crofs bars are removed, and the 
paffage left clear. The ropes, that tied his legs to the 
palifades, are loofened, and, if he does not advance rea¬ 
dily,-they goad him with long poles, fharpened at the 
ends or pointed with iron, and urge him" on with their 
noife and din, and, at the fame time, the females pull 
him gently forward : as foon as he has cleared theroomee, 
his conductors feparate, fo that if he attempts to go to 
one fide, he is prevented by the elephant, that pulls in 
the oppofite direction, and vice verfa. The bundahs, 
which tie his hind legs, tliough but loofely, yet prevent 
his going fall: ; and, thus fituated, he is conducted like 
an enraged bull, that has a cord faftened to his horns on 
each fide, fo that he cannot turn either to the right or 
left to avenge himfelf. In like manner is this noble ani¬ 
mal led to the next tr.ee, as the goondalis, before-men¬ 
tioned, were. Sometimes he becomes obftinate, and will 
not advance ; in which cafe, while one of his conductors 
draws him forward, the other comes behind and pufhes 
him on : ftiould.he lie down, fhe puts her fnout under 
and raifes him up, fupporting him on her knee, and with 
her head puftiing him forward with all her ftrength, the 
hunters likewife aftift by goading him, and urging him 
forward by their noife and din: fometimes they are even 
obliged to put lighted torches near, in order to make 
him advance. In conducting fmall elephants from the 
roomee, only one cable and one koomkee are made ufe of. 
As foon as each elephant is fecured, he is given in charge 
to the rnahote, or keeper, who' is appointed to attend and 
inftruCt him ; and, under him, there are from two to five 
coolies, according to the fize of the elephant, in order 
to aftift and to fupply food and water, till he becomes fo 
traCtable as to bring the former himfplf. Thefe people 
ereCt a fmall hut immediately before him, where the 
rnahote, or one of the coolies, conftantly attends, fupplies 
him with food,'and foothes and careftes him by a variety 
of little arts. By degrees he advances cautioufly to his 
tides, and ftrokes and pats him with his hand, fpeaking 
to him all the while in a foothing tone of voice, and, in 
a little time, he begins to know his keeper, and obey his 
commands. Thus the rnahote becomes familiar to him, 
and at length gets upon his back from one of the tame 
elephants, and, as the animal becomes more traCtable, he 
advances gradually forward towards his head, till at laft 
he is permitted to feat himfelf on his neck, front which 
place he afterwards regulates and direCts all his motions. 
While they are training in this manner, tlie ta’me ele- 
¥ol, VI. No.. 364. 
phants lead out the others in turn, for the fake of exer- 
cife, and likewife to eafe their legs from the cords with 
which they are tied, andi which are apt to gall them rnoft 
terribly, unlefs they are regularly flacked and fhifted. In 
five or fix weeks the elephant becomes obedient to his 
keeper, his fetters are taken off by degrees, and generally, 
in about five or fix rponths, he fuffers himfelf to be con¬ 
ducted by the rnahote from one place to another : care, 
however, is always taken not to let him approach his 
former haunts, left a recollection of the freedom he there 
enjoyed, Ihould induce him again to recover his liberty. 
This obedience to his conductor feenis to proceed partly 
from a fenfe of generofity, as it is, in fome meafure, vo¬ 
luntary ; for, whenever an elephant takes fright, or is 
determined to run away, all the exertions of the rnahote 
cannot prevent him, even by beating or digging the 
pointed iron hook into his head, with which he direCts 
hint ; on fuch an occafion the animal totally difregards 
thefe feeble efforts, otherwife he could ftiake or pull him 
off with his trunk, and dafti him in pieces. Accidents of 
this kind happen almoft every year, efpecially to thofe 
muhotes who attend the large goondalis, but fuch acci¬ 
dents are in general owing to their own careleffnefs and 
negleCt. It is neceftary to treat the males with much 
greater feverity than the females to keep theirt in awe; 
but it is too common a practice among the mahotes, either 
to be negligent in tiling proper meafures to render their 
elephants docile, or to truft too much to their good-na¬ 
ture, before they are thoroughly acquainted with their 
difpofitions. The iron hook, with which they direCt 
them, is pretty heavy, about (ixteen inches long, with a 
ftraight fpike advancing a little beyond the curve of the 
hook, fo that altogether it is like the boat-hook which 
ferrymen or boatmen life, faftened to a long pole.” 
The natural hiftory of this animal has been till lately 
very ill underftood. Much of abfurdity and indecorous 
fable has in confequence been impofed on the credulous 
public, particularly concerning the mode of propagation 
and geftation of the elephant. De Feynes and Taver/iier, 
J, C. Wolfe, and the comte de Buffon, affure us,, with 
great gravity, that thefe monftrous animals embrace like 
man and woman : that “ the male makes a pit or hollow 
in the ground, and aflifts his confort to lay herfelf on her 
back; and, in cafe he finds her perfectly compliant and 
agrebable, very complaifantly helps her up again after 
the bufinefs is finifhed, (for flie cannot poffibly rife of 
herfelf,) by throwing his trunk round her neck!”—• 
“ Thefe animals,” fays Tavernier, “ cannot intermix in 
any other manner: they require, therefore more time and 
conveniency for this operation than other quadrupeds ; 
and it is perhaps for this reafon that they never copulate 
but when they enjoy full liberty, and have every neceft- 
fary article at their command. The female mail not only 
confent, but folicit the male, by a pofition which Ihe 
never aHumes unlefs when (he thinks herfelf in perfeCt 
retirement.” 
M. Bles, and the comte de Buffon alfo affure us, that 
“ elephants obferve the greateft delicacy in their amours, 
abhorring nothing fo much as to be feen on thofe occa- 
lions. The troop divide themfelves into couples, (teal 
off into the raoft fecret recedes of the foreft, and there 
give way to all the impulfes of nature.”—The mode of 
connection, fays Button, “cannot be like that of other 
quadrupeds, becaufe the female hath the vagina placed 
near the middle of the belly; and on the other hand, the 
male organ is by no means proportioned to the magnitude 
of the animal’s body, nor capable of being extended to fo 
long an interval: naturalifts as well as travellers agree, 
that the penis does not exceed that of a horfe, either in 
length or diameter.” But it is plain that thefe naturalifts 
and travellers, any more than comte de Button himlelf, 
had never feen, or correCtly examined, the living ani¬ 
mals, or they would not have impofed fuch unfounded 
ftories upon the credulity of their readers. 
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