The morning news., 1889-05-05
AN ELEPHANT ON THEIR HANDS.
He is Crazy and should be Killed, but
How to do it Is the Gu sstion.

He Is Crazy and should be Killed, but
How to do it is the Gu sstiOn.
From, the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette.
What to do with the big elephant Chief"
is question that is giving Mr. John +.
Robinson considerable worry just now.
1t looks now as though the humanitarian
riddance Of the mastodon as proposed
some time since by means Of electricity
would fall through, and as it takes a small
fortune to feed the great beast aud con-
siderable pile of money to pay out in sala-
ries to his attendants and keepers, and the
constant expense he puts his owners to by
going o tears and smashing up property
to the right and left of him, his owners do
not deem him safe animal to be permitted
to roam at large. M John f. Robinson was
seen yesterday and asked whit conclusion
he had come to in regard to the killing of
Chief.
II haven't decided, yet what to do. It's
the biggest conundrum | ever tackled. l
can generally manage TO make up my mind
how to act promptly in any business mat
ter but when it comes to a question of how
to get rid of Chief why, then there comes
before me the greatest problem OF my life.
l am not alone in tue matter. pve appealed
to every scientist aud animal handler in the
| country to come to my rescue with some
sOlutlOn dS I'd now 10 kil biS btticb NlbnpuJ
torturiug him, but none have been able to
give me any sa isfactory reply, nor even a
sensible suggestion. Then this notice of a
suit comes to me on she eve of our depart
ure on ur summering tour and places us
| IN rather bad light before the public It's
! not our fault he has not been killed long
| ago. We certainly have tried every hu-
name means to do So"
How about the scheme to kill him by
electricity!'
1--WE will in all probability have to aban-
don that idea. Prof. Charles Dury, tue tax
idermist, has bad under his care for several
months all the little details of ARA lgement
to apply shock to 'Chief' that would has
ten death. The experiment has been tried,
and it has been said successfully, :, vita other
animals, but although we have held out the
create of inducement to electricians and
| scientists of the east TO come out here and
| make the experiment, to my astonishment
none of them will attempt the job
why don't you do it yourselfF
ave have considered that and have been
most willing. Besides several of the pro-
| fessorS of our McMicken university and
other scientific gentlemen of the west have
assured me they would be willing to as
Sist Prof. Dury in any experiment he might
have in view. The greaG trouble lies in the
| strong opposition of the electric light COM
panies. We have repeated overtures with
the companies here, but cannot get them to
consent to the arrangement. They argue
that if the experiment sDould be succ s,ful
and Chief could be killed by the power of
electricity it would prove ruinous t. their
| business, as timid people would look upon
| the powerful age cies of the current as ex-
! tire nelly danger to fool with and would
refuse to use the light or have the wires
about tueir premises. THIS refusal Of tn
electric light companies to cooperate with
Il, KIN cks thai question beyoLd any further
! cousid ration.
There was a ray of hope recently, how
ever, that we might be enabled to work
1T through the Order of Cincinnatus.
Thou ands of people would be attracted TO
| the scene, and to see an elephant killed by
| an electric shock would certainly be a
drawing card for those cu,i sty seekers
who crave such t ings. the Order of Gin
| cnnatus pro .osed to have their owl dyna-
mo and furnish sufficient elect ic power to
do the job successfully; but the same Mica
| came to them as with us, in the failure of
| the electric companies to cooperate. To
attempt TO kill him by sho Jting would be
simply torture, and the only remedy at hand
that L can conceive is to poison him. The
| whole fact Of the matter Is, | don't kn W
what to do with him, and cannot vet say
what disposition we will make of him"