The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-03-05
MY LORD ELEPHANT.
INJURIES OF AN ENGLIsuMAN
IN THE HILL COUNTRY.

MOwehn, the Weil-BeIoved, Disap-
pcnred One Night in Early Spring
After Passing Several Very Rest
less Days-He Took TO the Jungle,
But Later saved the Lives of His
Old Fricnds-ReceiVed His Liberty
rs n Christmas Present.
From our Animal Friends.
When I was stationed up in the hill
country some twenty years ago l used to
be passionately fond of hunting l hadn't
been out from England long, and the nov
city of following big game had not yet
lost its charms. My duties did not occupy
great deal of my time, and l could often
be absent week or ten days without
serious inconvenience to anyone with
couple of natives and my old Henry 1
would set forth on Mowcha, my elephant
Mowcha was an exceptional fine specimen
of his race, endowed with all its virtues
and but few of it's faults. He was strong,
patient sagacious and devoted to his mas
ter. He had never been used as a working
elephant, but only for the purposes of the
chase, You should have seen his uuwield-
~ bNlh Alltthiil6 IT'S way HOlStitSSiN through
the thick jungle grass, his great feet
lifted and put down with the utmost eau
ton, his flexible trunk darling in all di-
rections to scent the game. and his small
eyes cleaning with excitement. He
seemed to know instinctively the moment
to fire, and then he would not move a
muscle. You know it requires no small
,f
with a Bengal devil in a striped skin
charging at one, and too often it hap
pens that your well-directed shot is
spoiled by the elephants speedy retreat
The natives deemed Mowcha superhu-
man on account of his intelligence and
strength, and his mahout always called
him my lord the elephant and treated him
with the greatest respect. You know the
Hindoo belief, that the souls of ones an
cestors have to reside for a period after
death in the bodies of animals till they
have atoned for their shortcomings on
earth, and, lest they might unwittingIy
treat some of their grandfathers or great
grandfathers with disrespect, which would
be a criminal violation of their religion il
is their custom to give to each of the in
mates of the jungle particular title, as,
for instance, his highness the tiger or
often addressed as my lord the elephant
than by his real name.
He was great pet in the regiment
and for the children at the station there
was no better sport than to climb into
the howdah, shrieking with laughter and
have a ride on Mowcha. He seemed to
| enjoy it as much as they did, and carried
his precious burden with the greatest
dignity. He was really handsome as ele-
plants go, and looked his best when
adorned with his scarlet trappings and
harness, and bearing the howdah filed
with merry children, and Ii was a pretty
sight to see them afterward bestowing
upon MIN his reward in the shape of
pineapples, bananas. and mangoes. all of
which he loved to stow away in his ca
pacious stomach
l tell you all these details that YOU
may understand my grief when he sud
denly disappeared one night in early
spring. My lord the elephant had been
restless for several days, his mahout in
formed me afterward, and that evening
he had managed to break his chain and
had vanished in the darkness. Whether
he had been spirited away by a clever
thief, or had decided that ne had worked