Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-07-10

pieces there and then. He did get a
foothold now and then, but only tenn
porary one. Every time he stopped,
though, he lessened the speed Of tho raft
until its momentum was so much over
come that the hind end of the raft began
TO swing with the force of the current.
When this began the swift water soon
carried the hind end around until it had
become the front end, and the raft ran
away from Tippo diagonally toward the
New York shore. The elephant gazed
after it as if in triumph, and raised his
trunk and trumpeted loudly. Once he
seemed to have made up his mind to pur-
sue his defeated foe, and took few steps
forward. But he evidently reconsidered
that motion, and, stopping in the middle
of the rapids, stood there trumpeting
and throwing water around like whole
fire department.
"The raft, thrown as it was out of the
rafting channel, ran perhaps hundred
yards, where it was cast upon rocky
reef that formed the river bed in part Of
the channel. The logs flew in all direc-
tions, and the raft was made about as
complete wreck as one would care to
see. At sight of that Old Tip gave a
roar that deaf man might have heard a
mile away. The boatman who had
charge of Tippo's keeper had rowed
wildly TO the Pennsylvania shore with the
keeper in spite of the latter's protests,
the moment the collision between the raft
and the elephant had become a sure
thing. When the raft ran on the rocks
the keeper induced the native to row him
back to where the elephant stood, sound
ing blasts of victory in his trumpet. Old
Tip seemed to be entirely satisfied. He
had spent his fury on the raft and felt
better. He turned obediently at his
keepers order and resumed his march to
Pennsylvania as docile as ii nothing had
occuved that morning to disturb his tenn
per in the least.
son reaching the shore the
keeper made halt to see whether the old
terror had received any injury in the COM
bat. There wasn't the sign of even a
scratch upon him. While they stood on
the bank, however, another raft was
seen coming down, just below the
bridge. The men on that raft had seen
the latter part of the misunderstanding
between Old Tip and the raft ahead Of
them, and had been pulling with all their
might to run their raft to the New York
shore. When the elephant went out of
the water so meekly, though, they had
concluded that the danger was over, and
they rested on their oars, content to lass
on, Tippo did not see this raft until it
had run down to point almost even
with the spot where he was standing.
Then he caught sight of it. He gazed at
it for second or two in amazement. 1t
was as if he were saying:
"'What! Another one want some o.
me2'
"Then he raised his trunk, gave bel
low that made everything rattle, and
charged down the bank for the river
again. Themen on the raft didn't wait
for subsequent proceedings, but jumped
into the water and never looked back un-
til they were safely landed high and dry
on the New York shore. The deserted
raft sped on. Tippo's keeper flew around
like crazy man to stop the charge of the
elephant, SO suddenly enraged again, but
if Old Tip hadn't apparently made up his
mind, after reaching the. waters edge,
that the raft was too big coward for
him to bother with, and that he could
give vent to his feelings sufficiently by
hurling defiant and derisive roars at it,
the keeper couldn't have kept him back
any more than he could have stopped
cyclone.
"The second raft ran on the rocks
some distance below and was wrecked,
and Tippo didn't raise another objection
proceeding on his journey. In fact, he
was in rather a jolly mood all the way to
Milford, and so thoroughly was he
pleased with his work that day that his
keeper had no trouble with him for
week afterward. All that season when
Old Tip got on his ear and wanted to
smash things, his keeper would say:
"' wish we could run the old man
into q river somewhere and give him
another round or two with raft
"But the proprietors of the show didn't
wish for anything of that kind. 1t took
all the profits of the show for town or
two to pay for Old Tips wrecking of
the two RATS, and | don't know how
much for eamage claimed by the panic
stricken crew. left the show that sea-
son, but, if remember correctly, Old
Tip subsequently succeeded in killing
that same keeper, and then was killed
himself. But he was great old ele-
phant, all the same"