Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-10-29
Elephant Sam-His Memory Of a Blow
and How He ReVenged 1t.

SAM arrived in the steamship Wiscon-
sin on Wednesday morning from Liver
pool, consigned to Charles Reiche &
Bro. He is four years old and five feet
six inches high at the top of the arch of
his backbone. His tusks are just start
ing out from under his trunk. He bears
the reputation of being an ugly brute.
The officers of the Wisconsin, however,
have nothing but praise to bestow upon
him, though he is fond of rum. He
was led on board the vessel at Liver
pool with the proffered inducements of
rum and sugar. He is an easy-going,
self-possessed elephant, but with a
sense of insult. Quartermaster De-
laney was passing his pen on the voy-
age, and Sam, as usual, had his trunk
over the door, and was beating the air
for cabbage leaves and potatoes, which
the men were in the habitOf giving him.
Delaney happened to have a short stick
in his hand, and the trunk swung across
the gangway,
'To the dickens wild vel" said De-
laney, as he hit the trunk a welt with
his stick. Sam jerked his proboscis in
over the door. Two days passed. He
never altered his demeanor toward the
other sailors, but continued to beg them
for cabbage leaves and spuds as usual.
On the third day after the blow was
| given the sea was running smooth in a
gentle breeze from the southeast. De-
laney was sauntering along the gang
way, thinking, AS he passed the door
of the pen there, was flash, as of half
a length of India rubber hose, and the
| quartermaster was strewn across
closed hatch. The blow struck him on
| the side of the head, and he
was laid up for half a day. Sam never
afterward appeared to notice him, and
he never took any further liberties with
| Sam.
Yesterday afternoon Sam was let out
| of his pen. Around his neck was a col
lar of heavy rope. 1t was covered with
sheepskin where it rested on the top of
| his neck, and in each of the hanging
ends of the rope was an iron eye. These
eyes were Joined with clevis and bolt.
Attached to the clevis was stout chain.
Behind him as he stepped briskly out of
| his pen walked William Leopold, his
| keeper, holding the other end of the
chain. Behind him Boatswain William
Rood held in his hand packed ball of
/
ing stood in narrow passage behind
hatchway ready to help. The rest of
the officers mounted on some freight to
| get a full view of the situation. Sam
switched his tail and lurched forward
for the sugar with his trunk extended.
William Leopold tugged back on the
chain with hundred-pound pull. The
boatswain glanced over his shoulders to
see that the gangway was clear. The
elephant glided into a trot, and the boat
swain broke into run for a quarter of
the ships length. Then he darted into
a three-foot passage beside an open
hatchway to cross over TO port. Sam
pulled up at the turning and cast a
glance out of the lower corner of his
right eye down the hatchway. William
Leopold talked native African to him
and increased his pull on the chain to
two hundred pounds, but with no effect.
Sam brushed through the three-foot
passage after the sugar, and found him
self in the port gangWay. He was want
ed aft, where a heavy gang plank had
been laid for him to walk ashore on.
The boatsWain and the sugar, however,
had retreated forward on the port side,
and Sam was for pursuing him.
One of the employees of Reiche &
Brother got in front of him at this time,
however, and withstood the brutes
charge with an iron shaped like boat
hook set in a short wooden handle. He
was prodded with the pike, and though
he did not seem to lose his temper, il
at last caused him TO stop and turn
Ground. The sugar, which had proved