Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1891-10-16
ELEPHANTS.
A CIRCUS EMPLoYE TELLS HOW
THEY ARE CARED FOR.
Given q Gallon of Rum for Chtlis-
Protls Arc Necessary for Their
nianaaemcnt-Curin An Ele-
phnnts Broken Leg

BIr. William Newton, Of the Barnum
& Bailey establishment, could, we think,
give points, as far as the care of elephants
goes, to the head equerry of the King of
Dude. We know now that the elephant
ranges over wide area, and thrives in
fairly elevated 'ende sar the snow levels.
In this country, and in all geological
collections, he attains fair old age.
Their trouble, Mr.. Newton told US, was
a tendency to chills. "You had to be
careful how you watered them. If the
water was too cold, thsy were taken with
collie; generally a good stiff drink of
rum brings them round"
''And what might you call stiff
drink2" asked.
ooh, gallon"
"Show any signs of jollity2"
"Not bit. AS sober as Judges. I
have had to blanket serious cases of
cramps. I take rs many blankets as
eau get, and steep them in hot water,
and bind them round the elephant; and
when he's swaddled up that way he looks
huge. An elephant will take gallon of
oil, or the Same measure of linseed oil.
He may be sensible animal in some
respects, but not in all. If he picks up
nail in his foot, which happens pretty
often, he will stop right away and show
you his trouble, and let you take it out
for him, aud seem sort of grateful, but
he doesn't banker after medicine. The
way we work him is to make him open
his mouth. The oil we put in q galvan-
lied iron bottle, and VIC place that on
his tongue, force his head backwards,
and down goes the oil. No harm ever is
done him with the prods. 1t takes four
or five hands to make an elephant take
his medicine"
have always remembered very
clever book of Charles Reade's, "Jacl, of
All Trades" which gave rather sinister
view of an elephant. aud I recall too a
great deal of nonsense written about the
cruelty of elephant prods. 1t would be
absurd to try and manage an animal of
such prodigious powers-the strongest
we know of-with riding-switch, aud
prods are necessities. An elephant
knows his keeper and obeys him, may
show kind of respect with some little
affection for his master, but he has no
liking for strangers. If were left alone
with any show elephant, the keeper be-
ing absent, should Mt once want to beat
a hasty retreat. Never through curiosity
or care!essness get yourself between IN
elephant and wall, or you may have
the life crushed out Of you. The uoshot
of which is that Oriental mahoots or Am
erican keepers must have prods; and it
is also fortunate for man that elephants
have sensitive ears.
"Quarreiling among elephants is not
common, but we arc careful not to put
the males together. Their tempers diff
fer; the females, however, are rarely
cross. In certain seasons we watch the
males very carefully, for they become
dangerous. There is an elephant we
cured of n broken leg. 1t was long
job. We slung him, and used splints
and plaster. Elephants run down In
flesh in summer, because we work them,
md they are good deal knocked about,
but in winter they pick up. The tusks
of the female, which are short, have rag
ged ends, and inAict ugly wounds.
When they are SCARED we use carbollc
salve. When they stand for long time,
we have to cut their toes and the soles
VA sASh ASSt. VIC ueC IlSp uuu u CulScl,
and do not have any trouble"
When at Central Park, Mr.. Conklin
asked me to guess the circumference of
m elephants foot. 1 was ten inches
out of the way. Taking the fine brute
Tom in the menagerie, the keeper
passed cord round one of the forefeet,
and its circumference was four feet eis ht
inches. ''Tnat," said the superinten-
dent, fought to represent, when multi
Piled by two, Toms greatest elevation"
Thcreupon second measure was taken,
and Toms height was nine feet four
inches. have had n. circle with this
circumference drawn in chalk on the
floor, and it occupies about the room of
an ordinary tete-a-tete tea table. The
greatest diameter is only obtainable
when the elephant is on his feet; then
there is expansion of the massive toes.
The books give the foo. circumference
as one of the rough ways used in India to
get at the height of al elephant.
per's Weekly.
Tho New LIGHT Sbinz