The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1875-07-23
EXTERMINATION OF ELEPHANTS.

DIFFERENTIATION OF ELEPHANTS.
Efforts of the Governor OF CeyIon to Pre-
vent Useless Slaughter of fhe Animals
Remarkable Discrimination of Rogue
Elephants.
BY the last accounts from Ceylon we
hear that the Governor, with the full con-
currence of the Secretary of State, has
issued prohibition against the destruc-
ton of elephants. This has already
caused disappointment to sundry sport
ing travellers, and it is as well that it
should be generally known, that others
who are intent on the slaughter of big
game may direct their steps elsewhere.
The wholesale and wanton destruction
of these useful and intelligent animals,
which has too long prevailed, has at
length aroused the attention of the Col
onial government. They ought to be
largely employed in public works. Their
strength, which enables them to draw
stones of huge magnitude, and to place
them with ease wherever required, rem
ders elephant work far more valuable
and substantial than that of the weak
Indian laborers employed on the roads
and irrigation works in Ceylon. 1t is
particularly in the construction of
bridges that the value OF elephants is
manifest. Nothing can be more inter
esting than to watch the docility and in
telligence of these great creatures in the
performance of their tasks, now drag
ging, now pushing, to the exact spot, gi-
gantic stones, and placing them in
their appointed position with the accu-
racy of mason.
OF late, unfortunately, the strength of
the elephant department i'll Ceylon has
dwineled down to the half of its full COM
plement, and from every province where
works of Importance We're going on de-
mands come in for the assistance of ele-
plants, but in vain. Formerly we'll
trained elephants were not difficult to
purchase many were owned by private
persons, but still more by the representa-
tives of the Buddhist temples, who let
them out for hire when not wanted for
religious professions. Now none of any
value can be procured. The native head
men report that elephants are disappear
ing, and the wantOn massacre of them IN
those parts of the island where there is
sufficient population to capture them by
q kraal has rendered it unlikely that the
public want can be supplied by this
means. No doubt they can be supplied
by the employment of elephant catchers,
but the cruelties practiced on the
wretched animals by this process, in
which hardly one in three survives the
tying up operations after the elephants
are noosed, induce the government TO
resort to it as seldom rs possible.
In former days the number and bold
ness of elephants rendered their destruc-
tion matter of necessity now they are
fully alive to their danger, and instruc-
lively keep away, as q general rule, from
villages where they know they will be
encountered with firearms. Complaints,
no doubt, sometimes come in that an
outlying crop has been ravaged, in which
case the punishment of the invaders is
permitted. Rewards are also given for
the destruction of rogue elephants, who
occupy for time some particular road,
put to flight the post-runners, and teal
open the bags, which are abandoned &c
them to divert their attention. The let
ters scattered about are shown by the
runners III aUUeStaUlOn Oh Inelr STORY. IL
has, however, been remarked that
though ordinary letters in such cases are
recovered, the registered letters have
some particular attraction to the animal
and are carried off by him into the jun
gle.
In these circumstances it has beer
found necessary to put a stop to the issue
of licenses to shoot and capture, excep
for government purposes, for som,
time to come and it is desirable tina
sporting adventurers should be appriset
that their only chance of being allowed
a shot at an elephant i'll Ceylon is in the
case of notorious rogue, or of n hero
indulging in too frequent visits to irri
cation works, and consequent destruc
ton TO the dams. .-LOndOn Times.