The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1903-09-19

the elephants than with other children
They take as good care Of him as any
nurse could. Every morning they are
restless till he comes. And as for him.
he is always in here. He plays among
their feet and lets them swing him up
on their backs all day long. They
wouldn't step on him, no indeed. They
take more care not to hurt him than
q human being would. See here"
He lifted the boy UP to Babes left
ear and commanded: Listen, Babe.
Something to say to you"
Babe stuck her ear out and inclined
her head toward the boy, while he.
talked into her ear. Then she nodded
her head wisely and grunted.
Healey dropped the boy. Evan
stepped alongside OF Babe and slapped
her on the leg as high up as he could
reach, which wasn't higher than a
short mans knee. Down, Babe, down, !"
he said. Babe looked at him with q
funny look Of appeal in her aye. She
wiggled her tail and firted her trunk
and turned her head away, saying
plainly. Lets talk Of something else"
But the baby trainer was insistent
And Babe sighed-a rumbling, roaring
sigh, as if a steam engine were to
whisper: ooh, my!"
Then, with a weary grunt, she held
her trunk out to him coaxingly. But
Evan only patted it and cried shrilly:
Down, Babe, I say" So Babe, look
ing as if she had no friend on earth,
grUnted once more and dropped labor
iously to her fore knees. With anoth-
er plunge that shook the elephant
house she let herself fall cumbrOusly
on her side, and stuck her four feet
into the air. Then she held out her
trunk and wiggled her upturned ear,
Evan scrambled with hands and knees
up her massive, throbbing side and
perched himself, a little bright spot,
on top of the great tonnage Of black
flesh.
Then asilhad to go through the per-
Torrance and she, too, begged Evan to
let her off, but finally did what she was
hidden like a lamb. Each elephant at
once searched his clothes for sugar
when he let her get up.
Basil" said Mr.. Healey, "is n Of
the biggest elephants in America now,
She is a little more than nine feet high
and Babe is almost as big, but 80 years
younger. Basil and Evan have been
friends almost since Evan was born
He was born in Willis avenue, New
York, and when he was only a few
months old we came to Glen island and
ever since then Evan and the elephants
have played together. When we FRS
came here Basil learned to wheel EVaI
around in the baby carriage, and /
soon got so that we could turn he
loose with the little one and feel tina.
he was safer in the protection Of hi
great nurse than he would have beer
under the care of any human attend
ant.
While the trainer was speaking tn
big brutes were iOstling each other 4
reach Evan and tap him with thei
trunks. He stood between their legs
leaning against them, and the ele
plants never moved a limb withou
looking and feeling to make sure tina
they would not step on him. It WASH
possible to see a bit of him when h
got well behind n of the huge legs
but he was the master of the elephant
for all that-Kipling's TOomaii in rea
life.
He gets his love for animals legitl
mately, for his father has made man,
trips to Asia and Africa to get will
animals for American shows, beside
having been a collector of snakes an,
big reptiles in Cuba and South Amer
lea. He has been an unusually sue
cessful animal trainer almost all hi
life, and Evan has made up his min
that he will become one, too.-N. y
Letter in Kansas City Star.