Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1881-12-15
MAD CIRCUS ELEPHANTS.


think, was the worst" said DR.. +. A,
Graves, the veteran Snowman at Bun
nell's Museum. New York. /" Most
elephants recover from a mad fit within
a few days, but Hannibal = well he
would keep up tantrum for weeks and
months at time. The longest spell he
ever had began early one morning in
June, 1854, while travelling with Ray.
mond & Warnings menagerie, from Paw
tucket to Fall River. He broke away
from his keeper and ran the highway
thirteen miles, smashing everything he
could. Talk about elephants being
large ! Hannibal looked as big as 10.
comotiye that morning. The keeper
attempted to check him, and was chased
into q swamp. The first vehicle the
mad elephant met was butchers cart
loaded with mutton. He smashed the
cart, killed the horse, and broke the
drivers arm, and scattered the quarters
of mutton along the highways. Two
vegetable wagons were upset and the
horses were killed, the drivers escaping
unhurt. When the fury Of his fit was
spent, Hannibal was found beneath a
tree ;on the road side completely ex-
hausted, and for the time submissive.
Tusk chains were applied, and for many
weeks afterward he was kept under the
strictest surveillance. To approach him
during this period was dangerous. On
turaing out one morning in Burlington,
Vt, ] found a number of women and
children petting him, while he was
swinging his ears in evident enjoyment.
Then I knew the spell was broken. He
was very docile and tractable the bal
ance of that season.
Hannibal was the most vicious ami
NAL that ever tramped with show. In
1849, while we were at Connellsyille,
Ohio, g stranger gave him pail OF
water. He drank the water leisurely,
and then, suddenly turning his head,
struck the man with his tusks. The
poor fellow died. While chained at VIII
iamsburgh, N. Y, in 1857, he took fit
and pursued the keeper intoa stoneyard,
when he got wedged among the bouIa,
ers, and was subdued in that dilemma
Up to 1845 Hannibal was noted for his
unchangeabIe good nature. In those
days old Put Townsend used to be his
keeper. Put had trained him to drive
the stake to which it was customary to
chain him. One day Put started the
stake and handed the sledge to Hanni-
bal to complete the job. Hannibal made
ponderous blow at the stake-head,
but struck his foot instead. He threw
the sledge SO far that it required an
hours search TO. find it, and never would
touch one again. Hannibal lived to be
100 years old, and killed twelve men.
Columbus was another bad elephant.
In December. 1849. while with Ray
mond and Warnings monagerie, Chest
nut street, Philadelphia, he killed his
keeper, took possession of the show,
and retained it for three days, killing
in that time two camels, llama, and
upsetting large stove and two animal
cages. The doors were barricaded,
cannon were mounted in the street, and
soldiers paraded the premises in readi-
ness ito give him warm reception
should he appear. Finally two keepers
entered the building from above,
straddled the cross beams, and dropped
noosed rope to the floor. He walked
into she trap, and when he realized that
he was caught, submitted quietly to the
claiming operation. Columbus fell
through a bridge at North Adams,
Mass, the following summer, and died
few days later.
"Bil Williams, or Canada Bill, as
he was professionally called, was Col
umbus's first keeper. Forepaugh's ele-
phant Romeo killed him in winter
quarters at Frankfort, Pa, in 1866. Bill
went into the elephants den to do some
chores and his crushed and mangled
body was found few hours afterward.
George Waste was killed in much the
same manner by Turner's African
Romeo. Before rescuing party could
get his body away from the elephant it
was denuded Of everything except one
boot. The elephant Pizarro had mad
spells oftener than those have men,
toned. In 1850, he killed his keeper
and two camels near New Orleans, and
then raided the country for miles
around, doing a great deal Of damage
to farm property. Chief, who is the
only one Of the mad or rogue elephants
alive, killed John King, the keeper
with Robinson's show in 1879"
sfWhat causes the madness of ele.
phantsY' was asked.
.:If you have ever noticed, You may
have seen that there are issues from
the head Of the elephant, just behind
the ear. When these are kept open, a
thin, watery substance exudes there
from. I have always remarked that
elephants are kindly disposed and cas-
| ily handled while these issues are open,
but just SO soon as they become clogged
madness ensues. The insertion of a
common tape needle brings relief"
SIS it true that elephants are fond Of
stlmulants and narcotics r.
Yes, exceedingly SO. Now, there's
| popular error that should be cor