The Savannah morning news., 1901-04-06
ELEPHANTS WILD LARK.
queen Escaped, Demolished Wa
Eon, Frightened Citizens and
Went to ThundcrbOlt.

Went to ThundcrbOlt.
Queen. the trained elephant of the Sells
Gray circus got away last night and
nlayed havoc for an hour or more. A
wagon load of negroes on the Thunder
bolt road was turned over and the vehicle
was completely demolished. The negroes
we're uninjured, and escaped in the I'M
derbrush while Queen carried on her
work of destruction without interference.
Early this morning the animal was To-
Gated az the Thunderbolt race track,
where she was having all sorts of fun.
Those portions of the fence and grand
stand that did not please her were de-
stroyed, and she made several trips
around the track. breaking the elephant
record.
Trainer Hall and several showmen went
n Thunderbolt on horseback and returned
with Queen. The beast made her escape
shortly after the dress rehearsal and had
been gone several minutes before she
was missed. When it became known that
she was at large people residing in the
neighborhood of East Broad and Duffy
streets became excited. Storm doors
were closed and the residents of that sec
ton of the city moved up to the second
floor. so as to get as far away as possible
from the beast
one venturesome citizen started for
hose station No. l, on Waldburg street,
near Price, with the intention of request
ing the firemen to sound the riot alarm
and summon the Chatham Artillery to
run the elephant TO cover. The cry of
COW in one of the neighboring pastures
almost threw the citizen into a convul-
SIGN and he returned to a place of safety
as fast as his legs could carry him. Even
after he had been shown that the pecu-
liar sound had not been made by the way
ward elephant he refused to take another
chance and place his life in jeopardy.
Trainer Hall and the circus people were
almost as badly stirred up as the people.
There was confusion on every side, and
no one seemed TO know in which direc-
ticn the elephant had gone. The keeper
noticed that there were no pedestrians in
the direction of Collnsville and decided
that the elephant must have gone that
way. Her presence had probably caused
the colored residents of Lovers Iafie to
take to the high brush.
A mounted patrolman told the circus
men that he had seen what he supposed
to be a wagon load of hay moving in the
direction of Thunderbolt. His horse had
become unmanageable at that time and
the last he saw of the supposed hay was
as 1t crossed the Waters road. The pres
the nerves of the ragtime residents of the
lane, and several stuck their heads GU.
the windows to say that the load of hay
seen by the patrolman was the runaway
elephant They did not know this at first
and not few of them believed that it was
cloud from heaven and that it would
burst and set the world on fire. They
believed that the world was about to end
and had gone to praying and begging
forgiveness for sins committed when they
were children.
When Queen saw the wagon load of
negroes east of Collinsville she decided
to sprint for the bunch. She ran and
the ground under her shook. Some of
the residents of the Meadows thought
that there was an earthquake and jump
ed from their beds. The noise made by
the mischievous animal attracted the at
tention of the negroes and when they
saw what was advancing upon them they
tumbled from the wagon. Barbed wire
fences and bitches were not '1-2-7," and
when Queen reached the wagon there
was not a negro in sight.
The elephant made kindling wood of
the wagon and started on her journey to
Thunderbolt. She broke the fence down
to get into the race track and was run
ming heats with herself when located by
Trainer Hall and his army of canvass
men. Queen was taken back to her quar-
tiers in disgrace and in future she will
be watched carefully.
When located near the government hos
pital buildings Gueen escaped several
times, but did no dana ge. Last night s
escapade has placed her in bad repute
and from now on she will probably wear
chain like elephants supposed to be
more vicious.