The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-07-08
The Elephant stopped short.

Speaking Of elephants said a man who
had been listening to a story concerning
the intelligence of the huge earth-shaking
beast according to the New York Sun,
q have, for personal reasons, a very high
opinion Of such animals, because when 1
was in India two years ago il was my
misfortune to be in the power of one of
these Northumberland il very CONSIDERABLY
let me 60"
How was that?" inquired a friend
Well" continued the speaker, lit was
at Aliahabad in the Northwest Provinces,
that one evening L happened 10 be out drlv-
ing with a lady. On our way home il
occurred to us to cali upon Col. Farley,
and when we reached the madam, or wide
plain. which on the. further side his oung-
allow overlooked, we decided 10 let our
carriage be led around and to cross the
madam to the house on foot There were
sundry bitches and numerous rut holes
in the plain which made driving in the
dark dangerous, SO we got out and began
our walk.
Now, in the center Of the madam there
stood a barn in which the elephants be-
| longing to the department of which Col
Farley was chief stored their forage, and
on that evening one of these animals, hav-
ing been either idle or misbehaving, was
sun al that late hour busy unloading it
self, and a very bad temper, indeed; it
seemed TO be in.
I'VE had gone about a third of our way
when 7 heard its shriI cry protesting at
working overtime, and its trumpeting sig
niicant of revolt My companion also
| heard the furious beast, but she only
laughed and said:
" What queer noise that eIephant is
making
" Yes, very strange I replied, but
didn't laugh. For again 1 heard the
voice of the angry beast, and, so it ap.
peared TO me, coming nearer and nearer.
Still walked on listening with both my
ears, when suddenly I caught that strange
and dreadful rustling sound which an ele-
plant, when it is moving fast, always
makes 1t is the feet brushing on the sur
face of the ground Otherwise the adj
vance of the colossal brute is noiseless.
" Can you rum? I asked my compan-
ion
" Yes. of course, I cam" she said.
'Why?
" Look, I continued. DO you see that
white object glmmering over there? It
Is a culvert, little bridge. When I tell
you to go you must run there as fast as
you can possibly get While was speak
ing I was staring into the gloom trying
to catch sight of the approaching beast.
But against the deep shadows of the barn
| and trees behind nothing could be seen.
Suddenly I heard the cink of a chain
| quite ciose-on my right hand.
Rum said, and the next instant
there lowered out of the gloom, seeming
positively to overshadow me, the elephant
For a moment / saw the CLEAN of its saWn
tusk stumps, head the great brute breathe.
and then-why, or wherefore, is a mystery
could never solve-it swung swiftly round
and vanished as spectra!ly as it had ap-
| peared"
And the lady?" asked listener, So
| licitously.
why she had only got about fifty feet
away from where 1 was standing when
! she dropped to the earth in dead faint.
| When she came to her senses I and Col.
Farley helped her into my carriage, and
after congratulating each other on our
escape we continued our way home. The
next morning we heard that one of the
colonies elephants had killed its keeper
| the night before, just after dark"