The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1880-11-25
ELEPHANTS,


foot gives his height TO within an
inch or two. AS regards age, look
ing to their peculiar dentItion and
other circumstances, Mr.. Sander
son thinks it by no means improb-
able elephsnts live to $50 or 200
years. No one has ever, apparent
ly, seen the remains of dead ele-
plant, and this circumstance is SO
marked as to have given rise to the
helief among some wild tribes that
wild elephants never die, while 9th
ers believe that there is place I'M
seen by human eye to which they
retire and end their days. In Mr..
Sanderson's wanderings for years
through elephant jungles he has
not only never seen the remains OF
an elephant that had died a natural
death, but he had never met anyone
among the jungle tribes or profess
sional hunters who had. The Gin
galese have superstition that on
feeling the approach of dissolution
the elephant retires TO solitary
valley and there resigns himself to
death. There is a similar belief in
India, but Mr.. Sanderson shows
that it is untenable. One would
not expect to hear that elephants
are expert swimmers, though they
can no more jump a ditch eight
feet wide than they can dance q
a hornpipe. Such, however, seems
to be the case from the fact that
large numbers of them are annually
sent across the tideway of the
Ganges between Dacca and Bar
rackpore, and are sometimes six
consecutive hours without touching
the bottom. Mr.. Sanderson had
seen an elephant swim a river 30C
yards wide with his hind legs tied
together. They are sometimes
drowned. apparently by being at
tackled with cramps or with fit.
The belief that wild elephants
have decreased in India is shown
by Mr.. Sanderson to be incorrect.
The records of the past fifty years
attest that there is no diminution
in the numbers obtainable in Ben
gal, while in Southern India ele-
plants have become so numerous
of late years that they are annually
appearing in places where they
have never been heard of before.
In fact, Mr.. Sanderson thinks that
unless something is done the rifle
will have to be used to protect the
ryots or tracts bordering upon ele
plants iungles. To give an idea of
the number of wild elephants in
some parts of India, the lecturer
stated that during the past three
years SOB elephants have been cap
tured by the Decca Kheddah eslab-
lishment, in a track of country for
ty miles long by twenty broad. in
the Caro- bills, while not less than
1000 were met during the hunting
operations. The lecturer gave a
graphic description of the different
modes of capturing and training
the elephants Here is an extract:
"When an elephant chases men
they betake themselves to the shell
ter of tree trunks, bamboo clumps,
or long grass, apd 1t is astonishing
to see how they frequently escape
uninjured. l have known many
cases of men standing against q
tree or hiding in tufts of long
grass within couple of yards OF
elephants that were pausing in in
decision, without being discovered.
though the elephants were evident
ly aware of their close proximity,
as they kicked up the ground in an
ger and made of. In such cases
the slightest movement would have
led to the hunter being instantly
trampled to death. Men are fire.
quently killed, Of course, but they
are always young hands who are
learning. ] saw one make a mar.
row escape a few months ago. He
ran from an elephant and climbed a
tree; the elephant butted the trunk
and the man fell down. but his
pursuer was so astonished at the
sight that she fed at once. Some
times drives are conducted by torch
light, and those seldom fail, owing
TO the elephants fear of fire. The
scenes on these occasions are excit
ing beyond description"