Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1904-03-31
CAPTURING ELEPHANTS.

Catching wild elephants alive is
perhaps the most exciting occupation
that ever falls to the lot of mortal
man. Il is not exactly sport, for it is
highly profitable business.
Sixty wild elephants have just been
caught in India for exhibition in
America. That is a great herd. The
Hsgenbecks, of Hamburg, are super
intending the work of catching them
and shipping them to America.
There are several well recognized
method. of catching elephants alive.
The quickest, cheapest, most pro-
ductive, but at the same time most
dangerous method is by lassoing them.
With this method there is no waste
of time and money in building corrals
or traps that the elephants may never
get into.
The elephant hunters ascertain the
whereabouts of herd of wild ele-
plants by their tracks. They are
only found in the remotest and most
inaccessible parts of the world, and
they are extremely wary Of man and
hard to track. The pursuers must
keep carefully to windward Of them
and come up on them swiftly and
silently.
The hunters ride after their game
on tame elephants, whose services are
of inestimable value il catching their
wild brothers. When the hunters
come upon herd they surround them
on all sides but one, and drive them
down to the nearest water, the larger
the river or lake the better.
1t is wild stampede of frightened
elephants, who wbirl their trunks in
the air as they run and trumpet hor-
ribly.
The hunters ride straight down in
to the water after the wild elephants
Each man picks out an elephant and
lassoes him over the head. One end
of the lasso is made fast to the tame
elephant. Then the hunter goes back
to the shore and plays the elephant
The lasso is made Of a peculiarly
tough Indian fiber. The frightened
elephant usually tries to get away.
The man on the tame elephant lets
out few yards of the lasso, but he
keeps up a hard pull all the time
The more the elephant struggles the
tighter the moose pulls around his
neck. He founders and struggles
around till he becomes exhausted.
Then the hunter rides in after him
and climbs up on his back. The tame
elephant keeps on pulling toward the
shore, as directed by his master In
this way the wild elephant is got into
shallow water. There a lot Of ma
tives surround him and attach lines
to all his legs. With these they pull
in every direction, 80 that at last
they confuse and overpower him. He
does not know on which enemy to
charge, for they surround him on
every side. Finally he is both eI-
hausted and frightened. Then he is
led into a corral and chained for the
night.
Heis kept without food for two or
three days to break his temper COM
pletely. After that he becomes so
humble that child could do snv-
thing with him. A man goes up to
him one morning and gives him a
modest repast. The animal acceptslt
humbly and thankfully and becomes
that mans devoted slave for the rest
of his life. 1t is the custom of the
East to keep the fret man who feeds
a wild elephant as his mahout or rider.
Of course, many accidents are like
ly to happen in this hunting process.
Sometimes the lasso will break and
the elephant will get away. When
the animal pulls too hard the lassc
may cut into his skin and injurs him
so severely that he will die.
Then, again, it will happen that a
fierce old elephant, usually big bull
or female with calf, will turn and
charge straight at the hunter. Then
there will be an exciting time for the
man, but he is usually wea defended
by his tame elephant While thetwc
animals are engaged in a fight the
intrepid natives will lasso the wild
ones leg.
Another method of catching live
elephants is by trapping them. Th'
natives dig several large pits, 6 fee
deep and 10 by 20 feet in size
These are covered with small sapling
] or bamboo strips and Light sPrink