The National tribune., 1898-01-13

StCtIt IL uelccCIVe, though no
so much on arcount OF any imperfectiOn in
the eye, as because OF that organ S position
which considerably circumscribes the
visual fed. Ii our supposititious elephant
does not observe that there are enemies al
hand, he may loiter indefinitely or per
haps lean against rec and begin to snore
/ SO, as to shake the leaves.
That is scarcely proba bic, however. since
commonly flaw of wind watts an effiuyirIn
to his nestris, or some suspicious sound
Is caught by those exqui siteiy-sensitive
ears. At once his appearance alters
strangely. The head ceases to sway, the
ears no longer flap every muscle is braced
and this but now inert form, becomes rigid
! in an attitude CT intense attention the
cooked ears and slow moving, extended
trunk catching every stir and each faint
upon the air.
AS was said, certain elephants are always
ready to fight and if this be so in the in
stance imagined, a sportsman among Ash
attic hunting grounds waits until, at about
70 yards, the brute lowers its appraised trunk
preparatory to Selling him, and then fires
at the, triangular depression in its fore
head. If well made; this shot is instan-
taneousiy fatal. If not, the consequences
are apt to be unpleasant, as the long list
Of slain sufficiently attests
Most animals under such circumstances
Will promptly retreat. Should there be
cover, their boat-shaped bodies softly part
1t, and weeds or twigs slide together again
behind an elephants sloping launches
almost without a sound. His football is
1naudible, his movements amidst such
surroundings very difficult, for reasons
already given, to .detecg, and so this great
beast generally fades away with the swift
ness and silence of d phantom
No precautions against pursuit are, as a
rule, reSorted to; yet, having been hunted
inveterately through ages, one would think
nj
and often most formidable animals adopt
for evasion might have been originated.
There are few instances, however, on
record indicating that eIephantine inven-
tiveneSs has thus been excited, even when
the stress of need was great, and neces-
Sity for Seit-preSerVatIOn had become per-
SiStent.
Col Pollock relates the most striking of
these exceptional adjustments. While
stationed in Burmah he knew of some
eleph ants living on an island in a river
that was always changing its course
washing away townships, cutting through
the neck OF promontories, and altering
pe graphical features in these regions con-
tinually-after the manner of rivers in
these parts.
Whether this herd always remained
Identical nobody could tell; but since
such an aggregate essentially consists of
family groups wherein it is usual for
VI,
moreover, as separate communities of
elephants have been known to live at the
same place for an indefinite period, both
in AS "a and Africa, this particular society
may have heen OF long standing.
Whether that was the case or not, they
rayaged all this region of country, and every
mans hand was against them. Their island
could only be approached by boats, and
such an attack was useless unless people
had come in fleets: for those robbers kept
vigilant watch, and whenever party
landed the marauders swan away. Long
practice made them well nigh amphibious;
inaccessible iSletS set amidst quick sands,
iheels, and swamps lay around on every
side. In these they took refuge, and by
last accounts it appeared that this band
still prospered.
No doubt their strategy was c,everly
adapted to the situation; nevertheless,
they showed here an infeTiOrity 10 many
species in the capacity for putting two and
two together: an inferiority which is also
displayed, and even more cOnSpicuOuSly by
these animals, when they can be driven
for DAYS together towards corral without
discovering that all their movements are
under control.
Col. Pollock's elephants had been pur-
sued time and again. They were con-
santly escaping, as has been described;
but, despite this, none of them ever
suspected that their hiding place had
been found out. On every occasion all this
herd returned to its stronghold with the
same useless precaution, taking water at
long distances above or below and then
swimming up or down, SO as to leave no
trail.
Elephants have some rudimentary no.
tons about posting sentinels and sending
out scouts, but this is almost always done
by an mails that I've together or act in con-
cert, and their arrangements of this kind
are much more imperfect than is the case
with various species who have much less
reputat on for intelligence. Most of !,
latter, also, select an old male for such inn
portant duties, whereas among elephants