Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1903-01-08
ELEPHANT CATCHING
TRAINED FEMALES ESSENTIAL IN
THE CHASE.
USE THEIR BLANOlSHMENTS
And the Wild Creatures Become so
Interested in the Filtration that Ma
tiVes Can Place Nooses Around
Their Legs-The Rest Is Then
Easy.

elephants" said a zoo manager,
sell at $4,000 or more each, but the
Hagenbeck company has offered to de-
liver an elephant for $1,000. The ami
nal will be a young one, and is guar
anteed to be six feet or more in height.
1t will be of the Asiatic species, such
animals being famous for their intel
ligence They become the servants
and companions Of man IN their native
countries, and hundreds of them are
annually captured. They can be made
useful, and learn to obey the COM
mands of their masters implicitly.
These animals are used in blowing,
and one elephant will pull four plows,
with man to each, making four fur
rows at a time. They are also used
in hauling, and are especially useful in
piling logs in the great lumber re-
gions. They soon learn to place logs
carefully upon each other with aston
;shing regularity. Sir Emerson Ten
ent mentions having seen a pair Of
elephants that were accustomed to Ia
Dor together, anu which had been
taught to raise their wood pile to
considerable height by constructing
an inclined plane Of slOping beams
and rolling the logs up the beams.
There are several methods of cap
turing Asiatic elephants. One is by
pursuing solitary individuals and bind
ing them with ropes as they wander
through the forests. and another by
driving herd of elephants into a pre-
viously prepared pound and securing
the entrance so as to prevent their es-
cape. The hunters are aided by
trained females, termed kOomkies,
which enter into the spirit of the chase
with wonderful animation and help
their riders in every possible manner.
When the koomkies see a fine male
elephant they advance carelessly
toward him, plucking leaves and grass
as if they were perfectly Indifferent
to his presence. He soon becomes at
tracted to them, when they Overwhelm
him with feminine Establishments and
occupy his attention so fully that he
does not observe the proceedings Of
the mahOuts, or riders. These men,
seeing the elephant engaged with the
koomkies, slip quietly to the ground
and attach their rope noOses to his
legs, fastening the ends Of the ropes
to some neighboring trees. Should no
tree be at hand the koOmkies are sa-
gaciOus enough to comprehend the
dilemma and urge their victim toward
some large tree, which is sufficiently
CT 70 hct 10 cfr of
the captive. as soon as the prepare
lions are complete, the mahouts give
the word of command to the koomkies,
which move away, leaving the captive
elephant to his fate. Finding himself
deserted and bound, the elephant be-
comes mad with rage and struggles to
get free. In these furious efforts the
elephant displays an activity that is
surprising and by no means in accord
ance with his clumsy aspect Of body
and limbs.
when the animal finds his eXer-
tons totally useless, he yields to his
conquerOrs. He is first reduced by
hunger and in a short time is so ia
tigued that he can be led away. The
koomkies afford invaluable assistance.
One of these animals is reported to
have gone on a solitary hunting eXpe-
dition on her own account. and to
have captured a fine male elephant,
which she tied to a tree.
Another method of capturing ele-
plants is more complicated. In this
way elephants are driven into inclos-
ures called keddahs. They are ingeni-
ously constructed of stout logs and
posts and supported by strong but
tresses, and are so arranged that
man can pass through the interstices
between the logs. When a keddah is
in good order a vast number of hunt
ers form themselves into a huge cir
Gle, inclOsing one or more elephant
herds Sometimes 1000 hunters are
engaged and form a circle Of Is miles
or more, at times encircling several
| herds Of elephants, then closing in on
them and moving gradually toward the
! keddah, and arranging themselves in
such a manner so as to leave the en-
trance toward the keddah always
|