The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-24

mill the nerd. In this kfaal the
catching takes place. The term
'hunt," although invariably used in
Siam, is misleading, as the real hunt
ing is done in the jungle by the natives
who drive in the wild elephants,
The general interest starts with the
arrival of the animals, the day before
that appointed for the catch. Ayuthia
then appears like a city of the dead
All the busy shops are closed, the float
ing houses and huts are deserted, and
large boats and streamers, that cannot
go up the klong or canal to the kraal
are moored to the banks or anchored in
the stream. But a mile further up all
is gayety and animation-a second
Hnley! The river lined with launch
es, house and chow boats, is simply
alive with canoes, sampanS and smal
craft of every description. Europeans
are camping out in the temple rest
houses, or wat sala6, and the banks are
crowded with thousands of brightly
dressed natives eager and excited, con-
spicuous among whom are the foreign
ers-especially the women. The mas
sive brown walled corral looks solemn
and imposing in contrast to some grace
full green and red rooted temple build
ings half a mile across a pleasant
stretch of springy sward An hour is
quickly whiled away here, greeting
friends and watching the habits of a
goodly variety of eastern races. a.
sharp eye at last detects a dark mass
emerging from fringe Of jungle on the
far side of an open expanse of sun
dried paddy fields, and the shout ma
law is taken up all over the ground,
as the people rush to secure good places
for seeing the animals ford the river
One by one the herd, numbering nearly
four hundred, comes into view, rounded
UP and led by the trained elephants.
There is no hurry--they take nearly an
hour to do mile One would think, to
see their measured steps, that they
could not go faster; but only get them
excited, and see the rate at which their
clumsy legs can carry their ponderous,
swaying bodies!
1t Is a strange sight to see them
sliding down the steep bank into the
river, with their back legs stretched
out behind. And with what evident de-
light they play about and cool them
selves by blowing shower baths of wa
ter over their backs! After few
minutes the mahouts prod their mounts
and lead on followed by the whole
herd, which is punched together by out
riders on the sides, who keep in stray
gIers. The kraal is only couple OF
hundred yards from the river, and there
is a funnel shaped enclosure extending
from the north gate to the ford. Into
this the animals are slowly led-for
they must now be kept very quiet. One
leader and then another passes through
the narrow gateway, followed by some
confiding friends. The decoys stand
near by way OF encouragement to
those in the rear, which are impercepti-
bly, crowded forward A few get rest
less, but before long they are all safely
in, and the trained elephants slip out
through the other gate. Then it is that
the wild ones realize that they have
been trapped, and, madly eager to get
out, trumpet, below and groan, Great
ing, as a local paper truly said, "a
scene of such confusion that no two
people saw 1t alike" The walls now
swarm with spectators who amuse
themselves by watching the bewildered
beasts, some Of which seem to resent
their imprisonment, while others are in
different, and others, again, engage in
settling private quarrels or roaring de-
fiance at the gallery One inquisitive
youngster, destined for a civilized and
useful life, tried to squeeze between the
piles of the refuge, and got damned
across the ribs-the thckest part of his
body. His efforts to get free attracted
his friends, who watched him while he
struggled and beloved. One big fell
low tried to push him back but failed;
then there was a pause, during which
one could almost see them thinking,
and another having apparently worked
1t out in his mind, tried from behind,
and, fairly lifting him off his legs,
pushed him through, amid shouts of APP
plause from the crowd A native put
his head between the timbers of the
fence and was Immediately charged at
by large bull that had been busying
himself by raking up with his forefoot
little mounds of earth, heaping them
on the end Of his trunk and then blow
ing them over his back. Many others
object as not very evident. l believe it
was meant as an insult; 1t looked like
one ! was told that when the ground
is wet, and they cannot throw earth
about, they plaster great cakes of mud
on their foreheads.
There were three baby elephants, and
one, only ten days old, that had been
carried across the river In his mothers
trunk attracted much attention; but
he kept himself so carefully between
her legs that not once did he seem in
the slightest difficulty even when in
the thick of crush.
feeble attempt was made at feed
ing the animals: but, considering their
enormous appetite, it was like offering
them crumbs. The few small punches
of grass thrown In they picked up In
their trunks and, after carefully strik-
ing them against their legs or post in
the fence to shake off any dust or earth,
them by graceful action to
their mouths. The extraordinary flexi-
bility and diversity of movement pos
sessed by this appendage are attained
by wonderful interfacing Of, according
to Cuvier, nearly forty thousand mus
cles. Bananas were. of course, easily
but their efforts to chew up
cocoanuts whole were not generally
as their slippery coats made
them difficult to hold and as rule
they are too large for their mouths
One or two small ones were safely ne