Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1884-06-10
"KEAlLIN4 ELEPHANTS. y
How IN.

a hunter, is done for the purpose of OBJ.
tanning recruits for the public works
department, temple elephants for SER
vice in the temples, and now and then
for circuses, elephants TO be trained to
stand ON their heads and take coppers
in mot policemen VITA their trunks.
The way they are caught is in this
wise: The head man of the village re-
ceiyes notice from the government
that they require so many elephants.
Then the temple priests and the circus
people, If any, want so many more, and
they come in secondhand. The posi-
ton of the "kraap' is determined on,
and then the whole village, man,
woman and child, turn out as heaters.
A radius of say ten mile, is taken in,
and they "spot" the herd and then
beg n To drive them toward the .'kraal. =
BY day it is all done by sho)ting but
at night large fires are lighted in a
circle and, as ru e, the herd never at
tempt to break through, but now and
again they do, and then the whole per-
Torrance has to start again. 1t takes
very little to brighten herd" of ele-
plants into going the way you want
them-quite different from the solitary
rogue. Half dozen men with white
wands will keep whole herd to-
gether like flock of sheep. The
"kraal' is about 200 yards in dame
ter, and is formed by making strong
stock alley, with narrow en-
trance, into viii h the elephants are
driven. Once there, tame elephants,
generally females, are introdu ed with
mahouts, who make friends with the
wild ones, and two tame ones will slide
up to wild one, one on each side,
gradually closing up on him until he is
damned SO tight that he cannot move.
Then natives creep in undo meath and
make ropes fast all round his legs,
tying the end of one to strong tree.
This is gradually shortened until, from
sheer fatigue, he lies down, and then
goodbye to freedom. He is starved
there until he either rises as $ elephant
No. 90 of the public works depart
ment,p or as "the great and only
jumbo" of the greatest show on
EARTH" When herd is driven in
there is generally big bull elephant
al ng with it, who has to be shot before
anything an be done in capturing the
females. He is true gentleman, and
goes rampaging all over the kraal,"
trumpeting and trying to protect his
"lady friends from the animal man.
When the Duke of Edinburgh visited
Ceylon "A great "kraal was gotten up
for his benefit, VIII CHI / attended. He
was due at a certain date, but he was
two days behind, and when he did ar
rive he entered the temporary village of
huts under as uni ue triumphal arch
as | expe, he had ever gone under. 1t
was composed of all the empty beer,
champagne, a-water, whisky and
bran ly bottles that had been drank
while awaiting rduearrival,and
tie you, the arch was pretty b g one,
as the 81 mate is a very thirst pro-
vocative." At the same kraal" he
had very narrow squeak for his life.
Two good shots. Messrs. Fisher and
Varian. were put along ide of him, and
big bull elephant was to be the sub
irct of laughter. When the bull
charged the duke fired and IN s ed. and,
strange to say both Fisher and Varian
Q1U Gl6 Sttlllt. TIC t1C pAAttht Nsio esAAiVoV
on the duke when the sound of rifle
shot rung out, and the great beast
dropped Almost at his feet. No one
knew where the shot had come from
until attentis was directed to a small
cloud of blue smoke floating from a
tree-top. and it was discovered that a
"Cingalee shikaree had sh the ele-
phant when the others had missed with
an oil flint lock musket. So the mourn
ing warehouses in England lost big
trale.
When The elephant is caught and
tanned there is no animal under the
sun that excee Is him in sagacitv. and.
in many respects. he is far sup rior to
man. T g touch of his trunk is as
Centle as the touch of a woman's hand,
and the stamp of his DOT, or a blow
from that same gentle trunk, is as
powerful as that from steam ham,
mer. The g ,vernment uses them
chiefly in the public works department,
where they are employed in moving
huge blocks of stone, where it would
be expensive, and in fact, impossible
to use steam engines. They have been
known TO drag up huge blocks OF
st ne. shove them into position and
then sway slowly backward, and II the
stone was not perfectly rightly placed,
give it push either TO the right or to
the left, until it was.
A public works department man