Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-12-20
AN ANGRY ELEPHANT.
A STORY TOLD BY JAMES iNeLls IN
TENT LIFE IN TIGER LAND"

Hurled Into n River with Stew Pan In
Hand-Rushing Into the JunGie-scnsa-
tIons Of suffocation.
Tent Life in Tiger Land" by the Hon.
James Inglis, is the best book of hunting
adventure we have seen for many long
day. Imagine Allan Quatermain in real
life, and you have Mr.. Inglis. His
stories of what he and his friends actu-
ally did in the jungles of an Indian from
tier district outdo in graphic power and
exciting adventure anything that MIR.
Rider Haggard has imagined. Mr.. In
glis is trifle prolix, but his pages will
simply be devoured by boys, and read
with eager interest by children of a
larger growth. The story of the hunter
impaled on the horns of buffalo bull
and carried about for days until the rot
ting flesh dropped maggot eaten from
the bulls horns is one OF the most grew
some horrors ever printed in the English
language.
Here is sample of one of Mr.. Inglis'
stories describing the escape of one of the
authors friends from the attack of
must elephant:
"Run, run, sahibs-the tusker has
gone must or mad. He has broken
loose"
We all started to our feet. George
had Just gone down to the bank of the
river to where the cooking was going on,
which lay nearer the mad elephants
picket. By this time the terror stricken
servants were flying in all directions.
The huge brute, with infinite cunning,
had all along been making mighty efforts
to wrench up the stake to which he was
bound. This at last he succeeded in
doing. With the first desperate bound,
or lurch forward, the heavy ankle
chains, frayed and worn in one link, had
snapped asunder; and with the huge
stake trailing behind him he charged
down on the camp with a shrill trumpet
ing scream of maddened excitement
and savage fury. The men with the
spears waited not for the onset.
THE DESTROYER AT WORK.
One poor fellow, bending over his pot
| of rice trying to blow the smoldering
embers of his fire into fame, was seized
by the long flexible trunk of the infuri-
ated brute, and had but time to utter the
terrible death scream which had startled
us ere his head was smashed like an egg
shell on the powerful knee of the mad
dened monster. He next made o rush
at the horses, that, excited and fright
ened by the clamor around them, were
straining at their ropes, and buried his
long blunt tusks in the quivering f1anks
of one poor Caboolee horse that had
struggled in vain to get free.
All this was the work of moment.
Poor George, who was bending over some
,Ao
delicacy of his own concoction, was not
aware of the suddenly altered aspect of
affairs till the huge towering bulk of the
elephant was almost over him. Another
instant, and he would have shared the
fate of the hapless mahout had he not,
with admirable presence of mind, deliv-
cred the kissing hot stew, with quick
dexterity and precision, full in the gap
ing mouth of the furious brute. His
next sensation, however, was that of fly.
ing through the air, as the brute with
one swing of its mighty trunk, propelled
him on his aerial fight, and he fell souse
in the middle of the stream, with the
saucepan still tightly clutched in his
hand.
Over the river we could see the infer
nal brute who had thus scattered us in {
perfect frenzy of rage, kneeling on the
shapeless heap of cloth, furniture, poles
and ropes, and digging his tusks will
savage fury into the hangings and can
vas in the abandonment of mad, uncon
trollable rage. We had little doubt bu
that poor Mac lay crushed to death
smothered beneath the weight of tht
ponderous animal, or mangled out of al
likeness to humanity by the terrible
tusks that we could see flashing in tn,
clear moonlight. 1t seemed an age, thi
agony of suspense. We held our breaths
and dared not look into each others face
Everything showed as clear as if it ha'
been day. We saw the elephant TOSSING
the strong canvas canopy about as dol
would worry door mat Thrust afte
thurst was made by the tusks into tn
folds of cloth. Raising his huge trunk
the brute would scream in the frenzy O
his wrath, and at last, after what seeme'
an age to us, but which in reality wa
but few minutes, he staggered to hi
feet and rushed into the jungle.
IN A VERY TIGHT PLACE.
Just then smothered groan struc
like the peal of Joy bells on our anxiou
ears and q muffled voice from beneat
the folds of the shamiana in Macs wei
known tones groaned out: "Look alive
you fellows. and get me out of this
I'll be smothered"
In trying to get out of the way of tn
first rush of the elephant his foot ha
caught in one of the tent ropes, and tn
whole falling canopy had then com
bodily upon him, hurling the camp tabl
and few cane chairs over him. Unde
these he had lain, able to breathe, bu
not daring to stir, while the savage beas
had behaved as has been described. Hi
, escape had been miraculous. The clot
! had several times been pressed so clos
, over his face as nearly to stife him. Th
brute in one of it's savage, purposeles
. thrusts had pierced the ground betwee
=. his arms and his ribs, pinning his Afgha
, choga or dressing gown deep into th
,, earth; and he said he felt himself sinl
ing into unconsciousness, what with tel
sion of nerve and brain and semi-suffoc;
= ton together, when the brute had hal
PLY got up and rushed off.
"How did you feel?' asked.
"Well, can hardly tell you"
"It must have grazed your ribs"
= "It did. After that / seemed to tur
: quite unconcerned. All sorts Of funn
: ideas came trooping across my brain.
! couldn't for the life of me help feelin
cautiously about for my pipe, which ha
i dropped somewhere near when trippe
| IN fho ropoo caopoo6 too fo hor