Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1892-02-06
WEIGHING AN ELEPHANT.
How an Ingenious Prince Solved a DIFF
iicult Problem Of State.

How an Ingenious Prince Solved Diff
fcult Problem Of State.
About 200 years ago there lived a
Prince of Mahrattas, in Hindostan,
whose name was Shahjee. Princes are
numerous IN India. but this particular
prince was long remembered on account
OF his beneficence and great wisdom
he seems TO have been the most learned
prince of the time. and his advice and
help were always sought in critical mat
tiers. Many stories are told of his in.
genious settlement of difficulties, and
some of them are certainly curious.
Once very high official in the court
of Prince Shahjee made vow that if he
succeeded in a certain enterprise, he
would distribute to the poor of his dis
trict 1.-THE weight of his own elephant in
silver Elephants were highly priced
by these princes, and each kept the larg-
est and finest for his own use. The Of
ficial's vow, if hasty, was generous, and
perhaps the success of his undertaking
was worth the price.
The undertaking succeeded; but the
official, willing to keep his oath, was
met by an unexpected difficulty. There
was no possible way of finding the ele-
plants correct weight. No scales in
the country We're constructed of suffi-
cient power to weigh such enormous
beasts. Elephants were not sold by the
pound, and no need had before arisen
for scales to weigh them. All the learned
and clever men of the court tried in vain
to construct a machine of sufficient
power to weigh the enormous beast. It
did seem probable that the poor of Hin
dostan would have to get along without
that silver. 1t is possible that the OIL
cial had thought of this objection when
he made the VOW. Indians are crafty,
and this one might have been cunning
enough to leave himself loophole of
escape to prevent parting with his
money.
But if any such notion had occurred to
him, he was doomed to disappointment
in the matter. The question was re-
ferred to Shahjee, as all such vexatious
questions We're. And it did not take
him long to find very simple solution.
That is always the way with true genius,
you know. The solution it finds is SO
simple that every one cries out in
wonder:
"Why, of counsel Why didn't some
body speak of that before?"
Shahjee commanded the elephant to
be conducted along a platform into a
fiat bottomed boat which lay by the
water side. When the animal was
safely aboard, he desired the attendants
to mark upon the boats side the exact
height to which the water reached when
the elephant weighed it down. Then
the elephant was taken out and stones
substituted, until enough were loaded
into the boat to bring it to the same
water line as when the elephant was the
passenger
Then the stones were weighed. If the
scales could not hold all at once, par;
could be taken at time, you see, and
so the elephants weight was correctly
ascertained. 1t is safe to conclude that
the poor of Hindostan finally got the
silver. A prince SO wise must have also
been just. Whether the official who
paid the money was quite satisfied. his
tory does not tell us; but we will hope,
for his charity's sake, he was, and as
full grown elephant weighs several tons,
the amount distributed among the poor
of the district must have been very
large.-Harper's Young People