Home › Contents › Elephants Transporting Cannon

Elephants Transporting Cannon

them says: it was the means of bringing game of a been attested by special mention in the high class within their reach, for on the reports from the English officers. One of following day two fine tigers came stealing up to the carcase of the rogue Elephant and fell victims to the rifle of the native hunter, who was on the watch, expecting that such a thing might take place.

The foregoing narrative shows only one side of the Elephant's character. These ani- "In our marches across Bengal we used Elephants in the baggage train, so well disposed to us that, without waiting for a command from the keeper, if a wagon stuck, one of them would hurry up, put his mighty shoulder to the wheel, and never rest till it was rolling on smoothly again. Then he would return to his own his load, and pressed his huge body close proper place and duty in the line again. up against the trees on one side of the One morning, in the press of wagons and road to allow us to pass. My horse animals, one of the Elephants was hurt by trembled all over, and refused to move, the heavy wheel of a cart running over seeing which, the Elephant drew still his foot. I happened to be near, and further back and tried to encourage the bound it up with a towel dipped in camphorated brandy, and tightened the bandage as well as I could, and off he limped to his stable. coward by a gentler note. "Finally the latter plucked up enough heart to dash by on his way, when the faithful Elephant resumed the labor in which we had found him engaged.

Drowning Out the Rascals. "This Elephant had, before the campaign, been used as a watchman by his owner, whose estates bordered on a river. "In the afternoon I went to see how he was getting on. He was lying on a bed of straw; he recognized me at once, and held out his wounded foot for me to see.

I renewed the bandage each day; and after that the grateful animal never Marauders would drop down the stream passed my tent without a peculiar cry in their craft, and rob the gardens and orchards, and be off again without leaving any trace of their coming except the empty trees and ravaged beds. Tired of losing the fruits of his labor, the owner had trained this Elephant to perform sentinel which he used for that occasion alone, and when he met me he always gently rubbed my back or shoulders with his trunk, uttering little sniffs of pleasure."

Elephant Taught to Work.

Major Skinner, of the English Army, duty along the bank; and, when danger vouches for the following story, which threatened, the animal would growl like shows on the part of the Elephant intelli- a dog, and filling his huge trunk with gence, memory and comparison. water from the stream, would play upon the rascals like a fire-engine, drowning them out of their boats like rats, until they were glad to hoist sail and make off to the best of their ability."

Riding along a very narrow trail near Kandy, in Ceylon, where he happened to be stationed, he heard the heavy tread of an approaching Elephant, uttering discontented grunts which frightened his rather Some Indian soldiers, stationed at an nervous horse, and made him rear and outpost near Fort de Galle, in Ceylon, to plunge. He says: protect a granary containing a large "I soon saw whence these sounds pro- quantity of rice, were suddenly sent away ceeded. A tame Elephant had undertaken a few miles in order to quiet some unruly the difficult task of transporting a long villagers. Two of the party happened to girder, resting on his tusks, over the remain. No sooner had the soldiers withnarrow road. Between the trees on either drawn, than a herd of wild Elephants, side there was not room for this to pass, which had been long noticed in the and he could only advance by turning his neighborhood, made their appearance in head from side to side and avoiding each front of the granary. They had been tree as he went. It was a slow business, preceded by a scout, which returned to ; but on the herd, and having no doubt satisfied seeing how his trumpetings frightened them that the coast was clear, they my horse, he ceased instantly, threw down advanced at a brisk pace towards the building. When they arrived within a once to defy both the strength and sagafew yards of the enclosure, quite in mar-city of these dumb robbers. Nothing tial order, they made a sudden stand, and daunted by the greatness of the difficulty began deliberately to reconnoitre the which they had to surmount, they began object of their attack. Nothing could be their operations at the angles of the more wary and methodical than their building. proceedings. The walls of the granary A large male Elephant, with tusks of were of solid brickwork, very thick; and immense size, labored for some time to the only opening into the building was in make an impression; but after a while