Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-10-23
ELEPHANTS TRICKS.
HOW THE AWKWARD ANIMALS ARE
TAUGHT TO PERFORM.


thing, While Others Are Quick to
Catch an Idea - Forcible Methods
Used In Their Trimming
'Scores of people ask NE every day,
said Keeper Snyder of the elephant
house IL Central park recently. .'how
anything so stupid looking and thick
skinned as an elephant can be taught
anything. / tell them all that elephants
are not unlike children. Some are too
dull TO learn anything. and others can
catch an idea quickly. Tom, he went
on, pointing 20 the large elephant who
was busily engaged IN throwing hay on
his back. although irascible iii DISPOSE
ton. is quite intelligent The first trick
| taught him was to lie down. This
was not so easy 10 accomplish as 1t
might seem for it took a block and fall
at front and rear. with gang Of 10 or
20 men at each end. | stood at one
side. and "a / said Get down. his feet
were drawn out from under him. This
had to he repeated only few times be
fore he learned what Get down meant
for him.
ITO teach him to stand on his hind
feet and on his head block and fall on
"A beam over his head. snatch block
and two dead men in the floor and the
services of another elephant were all
required As | said Get up the ele-
phant in harness walked forward. and
Toms front feet went up, while his
hind feet We're chained together When
| said Stand on your headI his front
feet. which had been previously chain
ed. remained on the floor, while his
1 fhnx- oil
most literally kicked the beam.
These were his first lessons. When
he learned to drill to right about. face,
and left about. face l stood on one
side of him and another man on the
other and we each had a. prod. As
commanded Right about. facel' he was
pushed over to the right, and Left
about facet he was prodded in that
direction. 1 taught him to waltz in
much the same way, only as we pushed
him back and forth we made him go
clear around. and now he is one of the
best walters in the country. He learn
ed to ring the bell and fan himself in
one lesson. Both require the same mo-
ton. and they are really the same trick,
although people never think of that.
Yes he knows which is which and
never picks up the fan or napkin when
| tell him TO ring the bell. l only had
to put each, one at n time, in his trunk,
and with the fan and bell l shook it
and with the napkin wiped first one
side of his mouth and then the other.
He took to hand organ grinding like a
Mulberry street Italian. 1t is one of his
favorite tricks.
The elephant is the only ANNA,
whose legs all bend the same way. His
mind legs bend in. and the position re-
1uired for creeping Is not very comfort
able. but he does it as we'll as a baby.
His performances on the harmOnica
are the most surprising to onlookers,
but the fact il that all the intelligence
required for that Is holding the instru-
mcnt. As he must breathe through his
trunk, every breath moves 1t back and
forth | discovered that he holds his
breath when he stands on his hind legs
by trying to get him to do that and
play the harmOnica ut the same time,
but his front feet are no sooner up than
the sound ceases until they are down
again.
His tub is about 215 feet high, and
it took me about an hour to get him to
mount it the first time and as long to
get him down from 1t once he was up.
/ had finally To- improvise a step from 1t
before he would come down. He went
right mp again. however. and came
down and repeated the movement sew
eral times in the first lesson. Now he
mounts il and stands on his hind feet
hi; front feet, his side feet and waltZes
and changes on il.
People all seem to think that an ele-
phant has no sense of feeling because
his skin Is thick and coarse The fact is
that his skin Is as sensitive as baby 5,
and if yOu tickle him with a straw you
will find IL ont. The feet of the ele
plant have To be repaired frequently.
for they are as susceptible TO corns and
stone bruises as the feet of people. and
they have to he cut and trimmed You
wouldn't think it, would you, that
twice around Toms front foot. when he
is standing with his full weight upon
it. is equal to his height2 1t is true,
and it Is rule that seldom varies an
inch in any elephant
The African elephants have only
four toes, and their ears are very large.
The Asiatic elephants have five toes,
and their ears are smaller There are
few African elephants in this country
not more than three or four Not
long ago. at an exhibition in this city,
there was "A skin of leather with small
ears and comparatively fine texture (the
hide from all elephants has too large
pores TO make 1t of use). and it was
labeled. Hide from an African ele-
plant People don't know anything
about them. New York Post