The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-07-03
AN ELEPHANT DUEL.
One Mopstrous Pachyderm Butts and
Cores Another to Death.

One Mopstrous PRchyderm Butts and
Cores Another to Death.
1t was my good fortune 10 spend some
months every season in fine forest and
hill country in India, where my duties gave
me chances Of seeing a great deal of ele-
Ihant, buffalo and other bic game that fire.
quented those parts, writes Fl. Herbert
Thompson in the Weeks Sport. Our camp
was on a partially isolated hill, a good deal
above the surrounding country. We had
been some days in camp, but had not been
visited by our friends the elephants, when
one afternoon the sudden below of one,
evidently in pain, reused every one in the
camp. A hill man presently came up to say
that two large tuskers were hard at it close
by. Every one turned out onto the hillside.
from where it was easy, even TO the naked
eye, to see what was going on, while with q
glass even the movements Of a startled deer
could be made out
About 700 or 800 yards below the Gro wd
watching the fight were two tuskers. The
one somewhat nearer us, burly, stout
built beast, with short, powerful tusks
was evidently getting much the worst of the
combat, and the white and red burrows in
bis sides and rear plainly indicated seams
run by his ANTAGONISTS tusks. Blood could
be seen trickling down his head and Shout
ders On the rise of the hill was his rival,
a still larger animal, possessing the advan-
tage of longer. cleaning tusks. II was a
lost fight, aud in few minutes the victor,
with a quick rush at the other. made good
thrust at the side, and though there was a
severe struggle, the tuSk went its full
length in the now beaten brute, and using
all his weight the victor pIessed him down
the hill, where they disengaged themselves
and pre- pared for another bout.
The wounded tusker's roar of pain and
rage was pitful to hear, and though he
would have escaped If he could. the other
kept close behind and administered thrust
after thrust, but not in any vital part. Pres
emily, wheeling around they came together
with mighty smash. This was about the
only stand made, and the weaker was quickly
overpOwered by the more powerful and
fresher victor. Tie thIusts, now put be-
hind the shoulder and into the body, quickly
disabled the poor brute, and in fact, in a
few minutes, the great beast rolled over
dead.
Next morning, on our proceeding to look
for tile tuskers, we found large herd in an
excited state almost on the spot where the
fGish had occurred. In it were several
small tuskers, beside the big conqueror Of
the evening before, who seemed to instill
great deal of fear into the youngsters. He
came now into the open glade with a fine
young female, and as he approached even
the otner cows there was a general stampede
out Of bis way.
We came on the dead beast, which had
been butted and rolled, after it was killed,
into clump of bamboos. 1t had been a
fine. burly animal, but was marked from
forehead to rear and top to foo: by rips and
cuts. he measured nine feet and six inches
al the shoulder, aud the tusks taken by the
hill men proved slightly over 100 pounds to
the pair. TIE victor, which in the fight
seemed to tower over his foe, must have
been quite ten feet high, and had the long
"a hoy all Iii,
sockets. | tried to get him, but what with
his harem about him and the difficulty of
getting clear view in the long grass, |
failed TO get shot.