The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-01-29
TRAINING ELEPHANTS.
sugar Supplements the Whip as Means
of Persuasion.

| The cieVerness of the elephant and the
remarkable tricks which the big animal
performs at the bidding of trainer are
well known and have called forth many
ordinations of wonder. But to see q
line Of elephants march out upon the
stage of variety theatre and calmly pro-
coed to pound drums, balance. themselves
on one leg and ride bicycles. gives one
no idsn ut all OF the extraordinary
amount of patient training that has
been necessary to bring them TO do these
| things. just bow 1t is done has puzzled
many: aud, indeed. almost any one
would be greatly interested by visit to
an elephant school, says the Philadelphia
Press.
At ono of these esta Adjustments recently
opened the elephantine pills now num-
Der four, but as the schoolmaster is en-
deavoring to enlarge the school, There
will probably be some additions soon.
The school sessions are held morning and
afternoon, with an intermission for
lunch, and no sohoolboy ever felt the
chains of discipline more oppressiyely
| than 90 thee little pachyderins. Ihey
| are all babies, and their names Tesre
lively eFe Pinto, Mary, Jennie and Fan
| uie. The smallest weighs about 4oo
pounds, which is an unusually light
weight for an elephant; the full-gfown
animals weigh as much as 10, 600 poun ns.
The gchoolnaster is Albert Stalder. an
animal trainer, of 10 years experience.
He was lately found conducting ses-
sion of the school with q whip in one
I hop half uf lnGf in
the other. In front of the schoolmaster
sat Pinto, and this young lady was az
tually sitting. the seat being an inverted
| tub. Her forefeet and trunk were boat
| ing the air in mute appeal to her teacher,
who was patiently and laboriously en-
deavoring 20 induce the unruly trunk to
curl it's prehensile terminus around the
| handle of bell Ten times the waving
| trunk swept the bell on to the floor, and
each stimesthe whip cut the poor little
| beasts TANKS. The eleventh time the
trunk carried thesbell into the air and
tie clapper rang.
A few humps of sugar were thrust into
| the mouth of the elephant, ssand the saga
cious animal, quickly perceiylng that be-
| tween the bell and the.sugar there was
some subtle connection, was induced Eto
ring the implement a second and third
time Pinto was kept at rhis one lesson
| until it was timsssfor athe next class to
be called up.
When Pinto retired EJennie 5ahuffied to
the front. This elephant was the smallest
of the quartet. In fact the little ami
NAL was scarcely bigger than a large
sized dog. The trainer laid aside his
whip. Iemarking that this baby was too
young to castigate. Sugar Is the only
means of persuasion used in Jennie's
training at present. Her lesson began
wish remarkable series of gymnastic
feats. Jennie stood on her head, balanced
herself on one leg and ate Jumps of sugar
from the trainers hands while standing
rampant on her hind legs.
Then the baby was put through the
most difficult of all her talks. 1t was the
language session ut the elephant school.
Theslesson wasSRiven to teach Jennie to
talk. Questions were asked by the
schoolmsster, to (which the appropriate
answer would be ''yes" or "nc." An
elephant, of course. cannot be expected
to use articulate speech, SO the trainer
explained that the baby.swould sreply by
lifting and lowering its forefeet. The
patience of the traine r with this mininu-
tive specimen of elephant life was remark
able. Crouching down, the schoolmaster
lifted the .sfoot and lowered it the re-
quisite number of times after each ques-
ton, strok1ng the baby's trunk and ad
ministering copious doses of sugar. The
|
before the lesson was over she had made
an attem pit to answer questions without
the aid of the ssteacheF's hands. 1t will
require many weary hours of instruction
before the little animal understands and
responds to the teachers Avoice. Jennie
is young yet, only Is months old, In fact
the swaddling clothes stage &of an ele-
plants exlstsnce-and she shas, In all
probability, plenty Of time before her in
which to grow wise and learned.
Thesremainder of the school, consisting
of Mary and Fannie, was taken in one
class. Theswhip came into use again wish
this class, for the trainer explained that
Mary. who is aRtrifle older. and conse-
quently less of baby than ssJennie, has
a reputation forFheing ugly at times.
The class was called for the study of the
bicycle. The bicycles were big wooden
affairs, like small wagons. and che little
animals had to besurged with bothgwhip
and sugar before they could be induced
to trust themselves TO this style Of loco
motion. First the two animals were
pushed along by the schoolmasteY and
his assistant. Al they felt the machines
move the sagacious babies grabbed the
sides to steady themselves, necessarily
touching the pedals that moved tie
wheels, causing them to revolye. In this
way, explained the teacher, she elephants
would gradually get to know what Was
expected of them, and SO the bicycle rid
ing would progress from the SCHOOLGIRL
60 the exhibition stage of a performing
elephants life.
The lesson lasted for an hour, and was
accompanied by prodigious out lay of
sugar. The little elephants seemed TO
have most capacious nav for the stor-
age of sweets. This, explained the in
structor, is a newEadjunct to training.
The old way was to prod the animals
with cruel spikes, and bully and brow
beat them into submission. The present
system works much better, the elephants
doing for sugar wha. no amount of pun
ishmeDt would induce them to do.