The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1885-09-01
SACRED BEASTS.
The White Elephants of Siam Visited In
Their Royal Stabies-Not White. But a
Dirty Brown.

The White Elephants of Siam Visited In
Their Royal Stables-Not White, But q
Dirty Brown.
Tenderly cared for and numerously
escorted. we gingerly trod the heated
pavements of the palace grounds, and
suddenly slid out of the torrid sun into
the first of the sacred stables, which
contained the revered personality of
the so-called white elephant, DIR. Tep
Cots Kerr Nee. The name was written
in full. with the animals titles TO con-
sideration. on small piece of board
on post and translated for me by the
amiable Mr.. Psat Mum BAN Rung.
There is no good reason why travellers
who see these elephants should describe
their color in the same terms. But the
great variety of hues attributed to
them could only come from supposing
some of the writers to be afflicted with
the ocular malady called "color-blind-
ness" For instance, Finlayson. who
visited Siam in 1921, says that the
hairs of the elephants at that time in
the ROYAL stables was "yellowish. "
Bowring came as English ambassador
about thirty years ago. He speaks of
the color of those he saw as ''mahog-
any" Other writers call them re-
spectively BROWN" chocolate"
''red" and some even 60 so far as to say
that they are white. As to those l saw,
they differed little in hue from those
which are exhibited in America with
menageries and circuses. The one
under consideration might be said to
be dirty brown, that is if he had
really any distinctive color. He was
not handsome brute. and bis manners
were far from agreeable. His tusks
were small and ugly and his proper
tons were not noble.
His looks were surly, and he was
swinging his trunk to and fro in that
loose manner which might be inter-
preted as either vicious or utterly
meaningless. He was standing on a
platform in the middle of the stable
about foot in height. Parallel to the
platform was q stout rail, with heavy
posts at either end, to which he was
attached. Some feet above him was
suspended an oblong canopy made of
heavy cloth of gold, once handsome;
but now so sOiled and obscured by
age and dirt that i long look was re-
quired before the material was dis
ccrnible. There was but one keeper, a
wrinkled. spare. flat-chested. stoop-
shouldered Siamese of wonderful an
tiquity, clad in a dirty sarong, the
national garment. which covered only
fragment of his aged nakednesS.
His only task appeared to be to keep
the stable clean, feed his sacred charge
with fresh grass. quantity of which
tied up in small bundles of fagOts was
close ut hand. and sleep at night with
the incarnation of Buddha on a sort OF
incline plane made with planks which
occupied a portion of the floor. The
elephantine cuisine was evidently not
varied by the additions of either plan
tains, bananas and pineapples. and
not only were there no golden dishes
for the pachyderm's dinner service,
but no signs of gold about the place,
except the buttons and braid of Cap
tain Chan and the dirty glimmer of the
ancient canopy. Signs of reverence,
even of respect, were wanting. None
of the persons who accompanied me
cringed or dropped in reverential at
titudes before the elephant. The keep
er negligently turned his back on him.
When requested to approach his charge
he did not creep forward in making
the kotow, but awkwardly ran up in
an interval of his feeding and wound
the beasts trunk mechanically about
his naked and bony chest The caress
was stoically received. and with il
ended the exhibition, after which we
by the main entrance, rs we
had entered. and passed on to the next
stable. -Banghok (Sian) Cor. ~ Y.