Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-07-15
-. sACRD3 Beast EXPOSED.
rbe white Elephants of Siam Visited IN
Their Holy Stables.

and palace grounds OF the King Of Siam,
had seen the royal recepdon-rooms, the
thrones Of carved ivory, the gilded cell
1ngs. the paintings aud statuary so
layishly scattered everywhere through
me great building, had inspected the
royal temples 6lled with idols and re-
ocboiug the murmur of yellowrobed
Ruddhist priests and uOYIces reading Pail
rexts IRON queer books made OF palm
caves. when it was proposed that
sbouId visit the stables where the white
olephants are kept. | had of course read
and heard great deal about these beasts,
how they were kept in stables COW
orad with gliding and carving, OVershad-
owed by golden canoples, led with the
& anpsf fruits of the country from golden
& dishes. and cared for by horde OF keep
q 4rs VINO never approached them except on
q hands and knees, and with every mark OF
8 rprerence. 1t was evident from what.
ssvr mat change had come over the
shirt Of the dreams of the Kings of Siam.
& Foreixn instruction at the palace and for
sien influence everywhere about the court
81 have somewhat DrOadened the royal mind
. and softened the reverence for this pecu-
lar breed of animals into popular pre-
ndice. in public still treated with re-
snect, IN private neglected and ignored
nv the king and his immediate attend
ants. The stables stand in row be-
tEepp the inner and outer walls OF the
palace They are of brick or stone, In the
shane Of the Indian bungalow, but with
out the surrounding cOlOnnade or portico,
and. perhaps, as near as | can estimate,
about twenty-five feet square. The tiled
roofs slope up from all sides, and as
there are no strengthening partitions,
there is a row of round red pillars about
"a half way between the walls and the
centre A large door on one side permits
the lngress and egress of the beast when
q ever his presence is required in public.
The interior | found not we'll kept, and
about the walk there were implements,
utensils and such articles as were in Oc-
casioual use by the elephants or their
keepers.
sIANIESE OFFICERS.
Nv attendants were very nice but
rather diminutive Samese, connected in
Que fashion or another with the palace
service. There We're an interpreter, kind
y furnished by his Royal Highness,
Prince Diss, half brother Of the King and
Governor of the palace, who spoke I'M
commonly immature English; pretty
little White-COated and gOld-bra1ded Cap
tain Of artillery, no larger than a child's
tOy and a Second Lieutenant, also of ar
tlerv and a barefOOted private in blue
Uniform, bordered with white, followed at
modest distance and had the tremulOus
movement that Indicated his momentary
readiness to drop upon his launches
at the slightest authoritative glance OF his
Captain. The Captains name was Chan,
that Of the Lieutenant Jam, while the in
terpreter was a simple citizen who mod
psty called himself Mr.. Psat Mum BAN
Rung. 1t was only 10 O'Clock in the
morning, but the hot sun of tropical Siam
blazed heTcely over palace and howell and
made the umbrella gracefully lent me by
Capt. Chan most acceptable shelter. AS
for the Captain, he had one of the patent
kind that, when spring is pressed, goes
on With snap, and he amused himself by
a playful and constant use of il, as if it
were deadly weapon. Thus tenderly
cared for and numerOusly escorted, we
glngerly trOd the heated pavements of the
palace grounds, and suddenly slid out of
the torrld sun INTO the first of the sacred
stables, which contained the re-
ysred personality Of the so-called
white elephant Ora Tep Cots
keri Nee. The name was written in
ull with the animals titles to considera-
ton on small piece of board on post
aad translated for me by the amiaOle Mr..
fsat Nun BAN Rung. There is no good
reason why travellers who see these ele-
pants should describe their color in the
same terms. But the great variety of
huss attributed TO them could only come
nom supp0sing some Of the writer's
y DC afflicted with the ocular malady
ealled color blindness.n For instance.
lAiayson, who visited Siam in 1921, says
.lal lne hairs Of the elephants at that
lIs IN the royal stables were E'yellOw-
- bOWflng came as English Ambas-
oelol ABOUT thirty years ago. He speaks
y lus, Color oil those he saw as ''mahOg-
l! Other writers call them respec-
we! Drown "cbocOlate," 'red," and
s 5g.le even 20 so far as to say that they
Az "nite. AS to those l saw, they
e 5,,.gi "a little in hue from those which are
41ioi1eu IN America with menageries
and eIrcuses. The one under consIdera.
n ~. miglt be said to be a dirty brown,
81 3D. II be had really any distinctive
s,J 4, he was not "a handsome brute,
H. , u,a manners were far from agreeable.
nror 'u9hs were small and ugly, and his
p'VpWuons were not noble.
But LITTLE REVERENCE.
NJ looks were surly and he was swing
me- n l trunk TO and fro in that loose man.
~ nuleh might be interpreted as either
l'ue of utterly meaningless. He vas
b@uulug on platform in the middle of
IA ,9'@'t' ABOUT foot in height. Paral-
w. jug platform was a stout rail, with
w. posts at either end. to which he
~, "llached. Some feet above him was
ksspt,Atu,eu an OblOng canopy, made Of
Soe ciotn OF gold, once handsome, but
an, ~ 80 solled and Obscured by age and
al , ,ueI long look was required before
m, Material was discernble. There was
cbss,uugg keeper, a wrinkled, spare, fiat.
49,, sto0p-sh0uldered Siamese OF
ror', 49, /. lui antiquity. clad in dirty sa-
eraS Ie national garment, which COW
hess "ii q fragment OF bis aged naked
80. MS only task appeared TO be TO
ny lle stable clean, feed his sacred
Tb,o5 WIN fresh grass, a quantity Of
agots ued up in small bundles Of
vas close at hand, and sleep
Bud5leuV with the incarnation OF
bad 0n sort Of inclined plane
gH,r ".tA planks which occupied a
ne 40. VI tle EoOr. The elephantine cui-
ors os tHuently not varied by the addi-
bbp.es ellher plantains, bananas or pine
~ ana not only were there no golden
ice I'm, tne pachyderm's dinner SER
xeep, no signs Of gold about the place
han s w. buttons and braid OF Capt.
lano.r lue dirty glimmer OF the ancient
1sei ~, nsus OF reverence, even Of re.
Rlo &c wanting. None Ofthe persons
b n,.,.l pdnled NE crlnged or dropped
dant q, +lh attitudes before the ele.
ack o.' Keeper ncgligently turned his
rr,,t' wv MIN. When reouested IA an.
70. a uIs uhurua b., ttt - ~