Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-10-06
ELEPHANT PASSING.
Demand For Ivory the Cause Of Great
SLAUGHTER.

elephant PASSING.
Demand For Ivory the Cause Of Great
Slaughter.
The great quantity of ivory annu-
ally exported from Africa. and es-
pecially from the Congo Free State,
is causing much anxiety for the fu-
ture fate Of the big king of the
jungles. AS there are official sta
tistics Of the amount of the ivory
exported. Of how much is sold in
year on the exchanges Of London,
Liverpool and Antwerp, the ex-
changes Of ivory in Europe, the
weight Of this ivory, the number Of
elephants required to furnish It.
there is no great difficulty in figuring
out approximately the number Of
years 1t will take to annihilate the
last Of the elephants In Africa.
The year 1897 may be taken as q
sample as in that year there were sold
in the above mentioned exchanges
$50 tons Of ivory. To this should be
added several tons to come nearer
the truth, but let US be generous In
our mathematical calculations. 1t
will give the elephant some few ex-
ira years to live and will be con-
ISOLATION to many, who cannot but
feel indignation at the thought that
the big, strong, useful and rather
harmless beast is in danger Of dis
appearing from the earth.
In August 1897, was sold on the
exchange in Antwerp about $4,000
tusks, representing the death Of 5000
elephants, as each one has two
tusks. The whole weight Of these
10000 tusks was about 100000
pounds. That means that each ele-
phant gave about 20 pounds Of ivory.
This, of course, is = Arithmetic
medium" only. as there may have
been tusks Weighing so or rs pounds.
II we look upon such ornamental
tusks as, for instance. were seen
among the queens jubilee presents
at the St. Louis fair, their weight
must be two or three times the aver
age weight Of a tusk.
Now, 1t remains only to know the
number Of elephants in Africa. This
may be difficult to decide fairly cor
rectly. The great African explorer.
Henry M. Stanley however has said
that some years ago he estimated the
number of elephants In Africa to be
from 500, 900 to 100000, and in Con-
60 from 100000 to 100000. One ton
is about 1900 pounds, or some little
more. Therefore we reach the re-
grettable figure Of about 10000 ele-
plants needed to furnish the ivory
sold in 1897. Is not that figure high
enough to justify apprehension as to
the fate Of the elephant, and does 1t
not appear certain that the elephant
rapidly approaches possible and
complete annihilation?
There are in this matter, fortunate
Iy, some qualifying circumstances. AS
the natives for years and genera
tons have been hunting elephants In
Africa, mostly for pastime. I dare
say, as they really have little use
for the brute when dead, they have,
been In the habit Of burying the
tusks, and now, since they are ex-
pected to pay certain tax" In
ivory to the Congo government. they
have begun to unearth large guam
titles of ivory. Thus 1t is sure that
part Of the ivory exported In the
year 1897 was not from freshly
killed elephants.
It is not the idea that all killing
of the elephant should be stopped.
Ivory is the best-paying article to
the Congo State, and as 1t takes coz
lossal sums to run that country,
ivory must be sold. But how or
where to draw the line between too
much and moderate killing OF ele-
phants? King Leopold. Of Belgium.
sovereign Of the Congo Free State,
gave out already. in 1889. a royal
decree forbidding the white" en-
ployes to hunt elephants. But as
there are between 20.000,000 and
80, 900, 900 natives in Congo who for
hundreds OF years have been killing
elephants without discretion nor any
one interfering with them. how can
we expect them to stop killing ele-
phants, or how can any control be
kept on them. living in the jungles
as the most do. Besides, they are
paid for ivory in merchandise
brought from Europe, and they are
immensely greedy for them. Thus
the fact remains that the extermi-
nation Of the elephant goes on at
fearful rate.
Some elephants are born every
year, but, in proportion to the killing,
the number must be small. The
elephant cow bears her babies" be-
tween her twelfth to eighteenth years,
and two are always born at the same
time. So 1t can be seen that this
process of natural increase is slow.
There has for years been going on
a movement In Belgium favoring the
domestication of the elephant This
has also been done in the Soudan by
the English during their long cam
paign against the fanatic dervishes.
Gen. Gordon used the elephant to
carry heavy burdens Of ammunition
the same Gordon who was killed by
the natives there, and whose death
the Englishmen for years tried to
ayenge, until Lord Kitchener sue
ceeded in doing so.
When Africa develops into an ag-
ricultural country-and the soil OF
the Congo, at least, is Of the best,
not a stone to be found for miles and
miles-the elephant will be needed
to execute such a work as our horse
or oxen perform. For this reason 1t
is hoped that something may be done
which for an indefinite time will put
off" the moment when civilization
with its refinement and vandalism
has succeeded In the annihilation OF
the useful king Of the African
jungles, the noble elephant.-St.
Louis Globe-Democrat.