Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-06-12

TIE CELEBRATED ELEPHANT ROMEO, which
died at Chicago, last week, has an eventful his
tory, having killed five keepers since his advent
in America, besides destroying any number of
fences, barns, garden patches, corn fields, or
chards, etc. He was purchased by an agent of
j. Mabie in Calcutta, about twenty five years
ago, having been taken from brick yard, where
he was being used in grinding clay. The price
paid for him was $4,000 in gold, and he was
brought TO America along with nine Others In
1852, while south of New Orleans, he killed his
keeper, known as "Long john" whose success
sor, 'Frenchy' Williams, shared the same fate
near Houston, Texas, in 1855; a third, Stewart
Craven, was killed in 1861 near Cedar Rapids
Iowa; the fourth, Bill Williams, was sent to bis
last account in Philadelphia in 1867; and the
fifth, named McDevitt, in Ohio in 1869
completed the list of Romeo's vic
Tins. In the winter of 1868 he
made himself disagreeably conspicuous in
Chicago, by tearing TO pieces the building in
which he was confined, on the Site of the pres
ent city hall, and rushing out on the street in
reckless manner, greatly 10 the alarm of the
inhabitants, who brought out a cannon with
which to cope with the formidable monster,
but he was recaptured before further damage
was done. Similar depredations have been
committed by him in various places, and
his grim hide now bears the scars of numerous
bullets and red-hOt irons used TO Subdue him
His left eve was shot out in 1865, near Phila-
delphia. He was bought in 1868 by Adam
forepaugh at an auction sale of Mabie's me-
na9erie, S25, 900 being the price paid He was
held to be worth at least twice that sum, Mr.
forepaugh having been offered $4,000 year
for the use of him five wears. His weight
when in full flesh, was 1878 pounds, and he
stood eleven feet two and half inches high
He was supposed, by competent elphantne
chron0ogists, to be about one hundred years
old. Aside from the great financial loss he had
sustained, Mr.. Forepaugh was deeply moved by
the catastrophe, as he regarded Romeo" as the
most valuable elephantin existence, attrlbutng
to him degree of intellge almost human
He had made study of the animals peculiar-
ties of disposition, and had succeeded in cstab.
fishing the most atleciOnate relations with him.
"Why, dash il" said the great Snowman with
curious culver Of the voice, and a suspicious
aversion Of the head, che knew more than any
| trained horse ever owned. lie knew he wasn't
right these last few weeks, aud when I'd 70 up to
| MN ana say How do you get along, old tcllOwP
| nc d reach out his trunk and take my hand and
put II on his lore-egs, as much as TO say,
lherGs where it hurts me; can't you do
something TO help itP" And then the
a,scons9late proprietor went on TO enumerate
Romeo SHINING qualities; how he would do
| any conceivable trick in The ring-stand an Tic
lore-legs or his hnd.legs. turn on n nivot ,yai,l
| 20 lame, kneel down, walk over his keeneTs
| body taking the incest care not 10 tonch a ehrad
| of bis clothing with his ponderous foot--in.
| short, do anything which You could nossiblv
| think Of asking nm elephant to do; how. when
the wagons would get stuck IN the mud, Old
"Romeo," with the power of hundred horses,
would getl behind and push them along with
the greatest Of ease; how, when he was sulky
and savage, aud they bad thrown him down
upon his side, he would lie there a day or two
before he would give up, but finally would
weaken, and with his pleading eyes fairly beg
to be reeased-and so on with volume Of inter
estng "reminiscences.