St. Landry democrat., 1888-07-07


They are the general beast of burden
in the country, and the government
departments have a number of them in
their charge. Each elephant has his
name, and it is interesting to watch
them at work. Their mahouts often
take advantage of their sagacity and
so save themselves trouble.
saw an instance of this up the coun-
try. The telegraph follows the adj
vance of the troops to secure rapid COM
munication with the rear. So a line
was formed as the country was oecu-
pied. First track was made by fell
ing all timber and clearing off any I'M
dergrowth, etc, to about twenty feet in
width, hundreds of men being en-
ployed. Such trees as were suitable in
length and otherwise were trimmed in
to the required shape for telegraph
poles, a number of them being. piled at
intervals along the track. Then the
elephants were sent to carry the poles
to the distances they were to be set
apart. saw one mahout conduct his
elephant to pile of these heavy poles
and tell the intelligent animal to pick
one up; he then with a long wand he
had for the purpose measured off the
distance and accompanied the elephant,
who carried the pole to the place the
mahout indicated. Then [ saw the
mahout tell the elephant to go to the
pile and place them in line along the
track, at the same distance apart as
the one he had measured. The man
then lay down under tree and went
to sleep. In the mean time the noble
animal took up each piece of timber
and carried it to its proper place in the
line. | felt so interested that stayed
to witness the whole proceeding. I
measured the distance by pacing and
found them all to be equal in length
and correctly placed like the first
one. The beast then went to his
mahout and gently touched him with
the tip Of his trunk and awoke him, as
much as to say: 'All is finished, mas
ter, according to your orders" The
mahout awoke, mounted the elephant
and went forward to continue the line
in the same easy and agreeable man
ner.
The Burmese mahouts are most kind
to their elephants. They tickle them
behind the ears, stroke and fondle
them and call them by endearing
names, thus getting more work out of
the beasts by these means than the
natives of Hindostan do. The latter
are sometimes very cruel to the ele-
plants under their charge, striking
them on the top of the skull with the
crooked iron rod called ANGUS. This
goad is sharpened to a point at its
rounded end, and as the driver, the
mahout, sits astride of the animals
neck, with feet and legs behind the
huge Tapping ears, he is in position
to infict many painful blow with his
instrument of torture. Elephants, do
not travel-fast, their gait being at best
but shambling walk; twenty-five
miles is the outside limit of days
journey. The Burmese girls give rings,
made of the stiff hairs that grow in
tuft at the end of the elephants tail, to
their young men," The hair from a
white elephants tail is considered of
much value, and in the old days of the
Kings of Burmah was only given to the
mobiles and dignitaries of the kingdom.
The young elephants are made pets
of and not allowed to work until fully
grown. That they are not deficient in
understanding, even, at an early age,
the following anecdote will prove: The
commissioner at Shweygheen had
young elephant, quite a baby, given
him by Burmese gentleman, and the
lively, intelligent beast afforded much
amusement to his owner and all who
knew him. The youngster could do
every thing but speak. He was kept in
q stable in the garden, specially made
for him, the sides being composed of
stout planks instead of the usual waited
split bamboo. The heavy teak door
was fastened on the outside by slid
ing bar of the same wood, running in
iron staples. The genial commissioner
was both fond and proud Of his garden.
He had, beside, parterres of beautiful
flowers, a great number of select fruit
trees, especially fine and rare sort of
which were highly priced by
him. The garden was well laid out
and the walks paved with brick.
Shortly after the young elephants ar
rival and installation in his stable, the
garden was found one morning to have
been robbed during the night, the man
goes specially suffering, a quantity Of
the best fruit having been taken. No
traces were left by the thief or
no footprints, nothing to indi-
cate how an entrance had been made
into the garden. As the hedges, not
circumstance, were formed
Of the square cactus, or Indian fig,
which was permitted to grow six feet
high and regularly trimmed, no nude
thief would come near them for fear of
the prickly spines. At any rate The
hedges around the garden showed no
signs Of being touched. z
The next night Watchm' were sta
doneass outside the gardepdt intervals,
mod Sas4iS noYsh;ros 1fatith zn,dars tn