The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-05
ABOUT ELEPHANTS.
Observations Gathered in Burmah
and Chicago.

From the Chicago Times-HeraId
Elephants like monkeys, are metaphys-
les. and there is the same futility in rea-
soning about them. A feminine colossa,
weighing 10000 pounds. sees a mouse in
her bedroom, becomes incapable Of paci-
fcation from the fright and nervousness
such sight engenders, and is henceforth
trenzled beyond control. And when an ele-
phant gets beyond control there Is no coun-
ting consequences. No matter II she does
toss down fifty lOaves of bread as a hors
d oeuyres; she may have lost her appe-
ute. Tor all that. Al any rate she has lost
her perspective and her mania becomes
homicidal although she bears pygmy man
KIND no malice. Sauntering through a
lour-inch oak plank as II Il were tissue
paper the dangerous bit of feminlnlty ia
yet scared by tiny mouse Let no one
dare see the parallel.
Why elephants are kept In dwelling dis
trlcts IS rather a puzzing question to an
swer. The particular animal that has ter
rorlzed our town was not kept for purpos-
es OF domestic economy, surely: for there
is hardly a field for the letting out for hire
OF her kind.
The utilizing OF elephant labor has never
been brought to absolute perfection In this
or any other country, owing for one
thing, TO the scarcity Of elephants, to the
dlihculties pecuniary and otherwise, in the
me or securing boarding and lodging for
them and of pacifying them when an
noyed; and to various obstacles such as
need not be enumerated here. They are, in
a general way, the same that prevent us
from using horsepower TO bring the dish
Is into the dining-roOm and cows for draw
ing baby carriages.
There are, however I'm eastern lands
where the elephants grow, Industries car
ried on principally by these accomplished
animals; and carried on systematically
and intelligently, and apparently from a
deep sense of duty. Elephants unattach-
ed by and chains, going about looking for
things to do, attending to the careless
ones loose ends of work, and teaching the
unemployed how to attain the nights OF
skilled labor. are not unknown sights
At Moulmein, IN British Burmah, is a
celebrated lumber yard: and in that lum-
Der yard elephants do all the work They
run the saw mills, carry. stack and float
ed hands-which Is. after ALL two tusks
and a trunk-need no telling, but go
through their daily tasks with regularity
and promptness. i could swear that 1 saw
one elderly pachyderm standing off and
cycling critically a pile of logs from which
one or two ends protruded unevenly, then
evening them Off with his trunk They I'M
shacltle the chains round the logs when
they have carried them far enough; and
some OF them are so dexterous as to make
one wish to leave the place as soon as
possible, In case there might be some mis-
applied skill brought to bear on the spec
tators. One veteran In the establishment
was teaching a youngster-an infant of
some tons weight or soto unshackle a
chain; and his patience was remarkable.
The young one was inclined to be play
full, and gave his grandfather few friv-
olous slaps, when coerced, with his pro-
boscis; but the old one contented himself
with raising his gnarled and fissured trunk
in threatening manner, and the boy
gave II up az an unequal contest. For old
age with elephants means added strength:
and every tor or so put On at the seaside
signifies four or five revolutions of a Cor
liss engine added to the motive Shaping
power Of weapon always ready for use,
and with a reserve of an ocean steamer
with full head Of steam on to back 1t up.
Which makes IL unusual for a young eIe-
plant to be saucy to his grandfather.
! asked the proprietors of that Burmese
log factory II the elephants really saved
much expense. Immense" he said eag-
erly. Immense. But one of them gets
angry sometimes and tears down a saw
course" 1t Is a mooted point and al
ways has been, which of all animals
Is the most sagaeious. / do not vote
for the elephant. He is possessed of a
vast intelligence, which he bestows weak
~ and fabbily upon an alien community
for that commumty's ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
far wiser, for he knows how to do
things, and then Will not edo them unless
kept under constant fear of the lash.
There IS no lash an elephant need fear,
yet he performs grinding tasks and re-
ceives his pay in hay He is tlmid, too,
who need not fear an army of giants.
Elephants might be used to great adj
vantage as beasts of burden in the east,
but they are dangerous in large cities
from their tendency to terrify horses and
the horses apparent inability to get used
to their appearance. 1t would be wise,
some of us think, If they were abolished
from the haunts Of men in Chicago. A
bulk that is unassailabe, as well as in
ductlle at crises, especially when per-
vaded by homicidal temper. should hard
" be entrusted behind gates il shat
ters like an eggshell when the mood
SEXES It,
There is something too large for comfort
about an elephant You know that it won't
hurt you; that kindnssG, mixed with
shrewd hUmor, wrinkles from that little,
ferrety optic set In that area If gray bark
called it's face; but when no explanation.
no apology for an inadvertent discourteSy.
would satisfy the offended dignity of re-
tributive vengeance weighing four tons,
it is better to be on the safe side We all
know how the elephant of our childhood
cherished up the prick of a pin, which you
or / would have for gotten as soon as it
stopped bleeding. for years, and deluged
the tailor with dirty water long after the
event had passed as the tailor supposed,
given by mistake, and with the best of in
tentions, might arouse the nevertheless
pacified ire of a mammoth animal against
a child of or years. So keep away from
the elephant and ask that he be kept away
from you. There are sights no elephant
can brook and nobody knows what they
are He has pointed a moral and adorned
a tale with his trunk for ages; he looks
are most unbecoming to him. The Jungle
is about his size, and at the risk of omit
ting one fragment of early education most
Of us will vote to keep him there.
Theodore Thomas was highly hcnored
during the concert in New York on sat
urday evening, as in addition TO the APP
nlause that greeted his efforts sumpt-
uous silver drinking horn was given to him
with the compliments OF PadereWski snA0..
ie crime Is deeper to-day than ever,