The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-31
ELEPHANT STOPS A TRAIN.
MESSENGER THOi GHT BEAST
SHOULD run FREE.
so Did the Pach,,ierm. 30 Tie Proceeded 10
lncratc Himself and DO Things to the
Mcyscnscr-Then lie Pulled the Rope
and stopped the Train With . Jerk.


Natural history books relate wonderful
stories about the accomplishments OF Gle
plants, Employees Of tho Adams Express
Company have just discovered that those
stories do no, tell tho whole truth. There
| nothing at all ga d in them about stopping
railroad trains.
That half-Rrown elephant il capable o.
stopping an express train moving at tn,
rat' Of a mile a minute was learned las
Monday night when the Adams Express
Company undertook 10 ship one to Atlanta
Ga. He was very small fellow and seemed
a. quiet az n lamb. They built crate Of
heavy timber around him as a matter OF
precaution rather than because they thought
IL was needed The elephant submitted
without even a show of resent ment. or
course. while the work was going on he
pulled of the caps Of all the workmen In
sight and threw them up on the roof Of the
freight sheds. Bu, that waa only play.
Then they ho-ted the crat" and the cle
phant into one Of the baggage cars of train
81, special fast express which Is made up
or five baggage cars and Two mail cars,
and which leaves jersey City on the Penn
svlvania read every night az 10 O'Clock.
The little fellow seemed to enjoy the lift
One-half of the car was given over to him.
THE other half was loaded with trunks and
packages. Messenger Slower, who was in
charge Of the car, said To his colleagues
that it was pure cruelty to 50 cramp peace
full and kind-hearted little animal. IT he
had had his way, he said, the elephant would
have been left loose in the car Stover's
good opinion Of his charge lasted until
the train was half way to Newark. Then
the elephant began TO show signs Of rest
lessness.
Slower talked baby talk to him, but with
out effect. When the messenger came
too close the elephant got hold of his coat
collar and tried to drag him into the crate.
Slower was glad to get away with the loss
of the collar. Still. he thought the Incident
merely a small misunderstanding
The first indication that his charge was
bent on mischief came to him when the
elephant began to break the crate TO pieces.
throwing the wood at Slower as quickly
al he could wrest It loose. Slower fed
to tine next car and sent for Conductor
Stuls
When they came into the car they found
the crate all broken and the elephant free
from the rope which had tied one OF his
legs to the side of the car. He was dancing
a two-step Of his own invention around the
floor OF the car. trumpeting nightly the
while, as if To furnish the music for his
tcrpsichorean productions. The conductor
and the messenger tried to soothe him from
behind wall Of trunks.
There must have been something irri-
tating in what they said, for the elephant
suddenly stopped Then he reached
up his trunk to the bellcord running along
the ceiling VI the car and gave one big
pull That was enough. The train came
to a stop as quickly as train can when It
is making sixty miles an hour. Then the
engineer began to say things. compared
with which the trunpetinss OF ths elephant
were IA Sunday school pleasantriee..
The result was that Stults made his way
to the nearest telephone and told the night
foreman Of the Adams Express Company's
Jersey City Office Of what was up.
what the dickens arm to dor he CON-
cluded
what can you dor the foreman tele-
phoned back.
Nothing said Stults.
Then go on" ordered the foreman.
But II he pulls the cord AGAIN."
Pretend you do not hear 1t" was tho
reply,
In the meantime the elephant had dis
covered that among the stun piled up at
the other end Of the car was a bale OF hay
and a bag Of oats. These be pulled over
feast While he was busy eating. the
messengers Of the other cars gave Stultz
and Slower hand in arranging the trunks
in the car into a barricade, behind which
the elephant was supposed to be a prisoner.
Whether he understood his plight or not
cannot be told. but he kept quiet till the
train reached Philadelphia. There an ex-
pert animal keeper, to whom the Adams
Express Company had telegraphed, boarded
the train. In two minutes he had the
elephant under az perfect control as II
he had been training him for months.
Another crate was constr ucted just TO
satisfy the apprehensions Of Slower. who
could not get It strong enough. Then the
train went on, and, as it has not been heard
from since, II is TO be supposed that 1t has
safely unloaded the elephant in Atlanta
by this time