The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1878-05-18
The Little Folks Column.
"Oid Soup"


own elephant story, as follows:
La the autumn of 1876 l was
living I'D the interior of Bengal,
aud l went to spend the Christmas
with my friend, Major Daily. The
majors bungalow was on the banks
OF the Ganges, where he had lived
Il great number of years, being tue
cnief at that station, and he had IA
great many natives, elephants and
soldiers under bis command.
On the morning after my arrival
| asked TO see his children, IA little
boy and glrl. whom | had not yet
seen, and inquired when | should
see them.
"Soapramany has taken them
out fsnlug," said their father.
why, isn't Soupramany your
great war elephant ?" asked.
Exactly SO. You cannot have
forgotten Soupramany
GOT course not. | was here, You
know, when he bad that fight with
the elephant which went mad while
loading snip with bags of rice
down yonder | saw the mad ele
phaut when he began to throw
the rice into the river His ma
hou!' (or keeper tried to stop him,
and he killed the mahoui. The
sailors ran away to hide, aud the
mad elephant ran believing into
tins enclosure. Id ooupramany
was here, and so were Jim and
Bessie. When Old Soup, as he
was called, saw the mad animal, lie
threw himself between him and
the children The little ones ard
their nurses had Just time to get
IN the house when the fight COM
meBced.
Yes, said the major, "Old Sonp'
was "a hundred years old. He had
been trained TO war, and 10 fight
with the rhlnoeeros, bat he was too
OiiA W Itt( tDCii.
"Ahd yet, SAID |, "what a gal
liant fight II wasl Do you reniem
Der how We all stood on tins porch
aud watched it, not daring 10 Gre
IL shot lest We should HIT Old soup
ramany? DO you remember, too,
ms look when be drew off, after an
nour and u half hard lighting, ieuv-
ing hIs adversary dying IN the dust,
and went straight to the corral,
shaking his great ears, winch had
been badly tern, with his head All
bruised, aud Il great piece broken
from one of his tasks
Eyes, indeed" said the major
"Well, since then, be is mere de-
voted to my dear children than be-
fore. He lakes them out fishing
for whole days, and | am perfectly
content TO have them under bis
charge i don't like trusting lay
children To the heather natives, bni
with Old Soup know they can
come to no harm.
found the children down Oh lhe
banks OF tie river, and beside them
stood Old soup, with. a bamboo rod
IN his trunk. with line, hook, bait
aud cork. like the children s. 1t
was not long before he had a bite,
for, as the religion of the Hindoos
forbids them to take life, the river
swarDs with fishes The old tel
low did not stir; his little eyes
watched his line eagerly; he was
no new baud at the business. He
was waiting till it was time to draw
IN his prize. AT the end of his line
as he drew it up was one OF those
golden trench so abundant IL the
Ganges river.
When Soup perceived what
fac fish he had caught, he uttered
one oi those hong, low garghng
notes of satisfaction by which an
elephant expresses its JOY; aud he
waited patiently, expecting Jim 10
take his prize oil the hook and put
on some more bait for HIM. But
jim, the little rascal, sometimes
liked to plague Old Soup. So be
nodded at Us, as much as to say:
COX out, and you'll see fun,
now! >. Then he took off the fish,
which he threw IN "A waterjar that
was placed there for the purpose,
ana went back to his place without
putting any bait on Old Soups
hook. The intelligent animal did
not attempt to throw his hue into
the water. He tired to move Jim
by low, pleading cries 1t was GU
rIous TO note what tender tones he