The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-09-15

sight, Fritz began to have a chill again.
The keeper watched the huge animal
few minutes, and then said:
No more whisky Fritz
Fritz Strengthened up, with a reproving
look on his face, and went to munching
hay, as much as TO say: mo more whisky
no more chills." Conklin believes, as do
most all elephant keepers, that the animal
can understand what is said 10 it. In
deed, trainers assert that 1t has more in
telligence than any other animal and that
it is the only one that can be taught to
mind by word of mouth, without other
cues. That il is endowed to a limited ex-
tent with reasoning powers. is certain,
and one German philosopher thinks he has
discovered that this mental development
is due 20 the fact that in the trunk the
elephant possesses prehensile organ SINH
lar 10 the hand of man. The hand, he
serts has played a more important part
in the development of the human intellect
than any other agency, since it brings its
posscasor into more in1mate relations
with the external world than any other
organ. Some menagerie man, with more
practical observation than the German
professor, and a smaller bump of theoriz-
ing. has pointed out that the only flaw in
this reasoning is that if it is correct the
gorillas and chimpanzees ought to have
a higher mental development than man,
because they have four good hands instead
of two, and any one of the four is stronger
than the eight hands of four men.
Well authenticated stories of the sagaci-
ty of elephants are so numerous that it is
never necessary to resort to exaggeration
to say some thing interesting about them.
In their wild state the leader of a herd
has been seen when approaching swampy
ground to extend one foot to try its solid
ity before trusting his weight to it. When
satisfied of it's hrmness he would go con-
4INr nd W
follow in single file, cautiously stepping
in the footprints of the leader, so that
when the entire herd had thus passed the
ground would look as if a single animal
had gone that way. The same trait of
caution IS preserved in the domesticated
animal. After one of its Brooklyn en-
gagements the show found 1t
necessary to transfer it's herd of elephants
by ferry to Jersey City. Before any of
the big brutes would venture upon the
deck the leader had to rap the solid planks
with his trunk to satisfy himself OF It's
strength Then he tested 1t by placing,
first one foot then a second, and finally
third upon it, and eventually ne trusted
the weight Of his whole body upon 1t, and
walked forward at the command of his
keeper. The rest of the animals followed
their leader without hesitation, placing
their feet exactly where he had placed his.
The action is not the result of training,
but a brute instinct always displayed and
bearing a striking resemblance to reason.
When Jumbo tried to butt a fast freight
off from the Grand Trunk tracks in an eff
fort to save the baby of the Barnum herd,
Tom Thumb and lost his life in the ct
tempt, it was said that his actions gave
unmistakable evidence of reason, though
it was poor testimony to his judgment that
he so greatly underestimate the force Of
the locomotive. He lived long enough after
the crash. however, to see that he could
derail a train, even If he could not equal
it in power.
In the matter of the food value of diff
ferent materials the reasoning power of
the elephant is very faulty, however. He
will eat almost anything that comes his
way If a canyasman leaves a coat or vest
hanging on a quarter pole within reach
of an elephant, the big brute will edge
over toward it and watch an opportunity
when unobserved to touch it with his
trunk. Then he will begin to haul it to-
ward him. putting in rolls of hay and
chewing them between times. As soon as
the garment is at his feet the elephant
will put one of his ponderous five-hoofed
pedals on it and begin to tear 1t up, rolling
the pieces in hts trunk and stuffing them
into his mouth The sole of a shoe is just
as good for him to chew on as wisp of
hay. and his natural instinct Of mischief
incIines him to prefer that which he knows