Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-06-30
MOST DANGEROUS BUSINESS.
Man Who Has Had Experience Says
Il 10 Handling Elephants.


Perhaps the most dangerous, con-
stantly dangerous, business In the
world Is the one into which I have
been tossed-the business Of elephant
man with a circus.
There Is a constant demand for "bull
men," but few will accept the position
and most Of US fell into the business
by accident and. showing talent OF
reckless disregard for consequences
made a success In handling the ami
mails, and have since been classed as
"bul men" and offered that job and
no other.
Despite the perils, the constant
watchfulness. the half conscious reali-
zation that death Ia near, probably moi
an elephant man In the world today
would leave his calling. It has 9
fascination Of a strange kind, and the
keeper becomes attached to the great
brutes that tremble at his word one
instant and the next may turn upor
him and trample him.
Good elephant men command good
pay. Most of them live In a state
Of constant watchfulness, realizing the
treacherous nature Of the brutes. and
those who do not realize this sooner
or later are trampled or hurled te
death.
The elephant Is the most treacher.
GUS, moody, changeable animal In
menagerie. They are twice as danger
Gus as tigers, lions or bears. The
men who handle the big cats In theii
cages are forced to watch closely and
carefully while they are In the cages
with them, but that lasts only shor'
time. We bull men" live with oul
gigantic pets, sleep near them, ride
them, order them around, enter with
them into closed cars for long rides
We are not afraid Of them. Before
many years we become fatalistic. We
expect them to kill US some day, but
hope It may not be soon, just az the
ordinary citizen expects death some
day.
Trainers testify that the elephant
brain works nearer like that Of a hu.
man being than the brain Of any
other animal. The moods and tempers
OF the big brutes change suddenly
The weather, a hard night ride on the
cars. a bruised foot may turn the best
natured elephant into a peevish brute
ready to strike and murder in an In
slant. But these moods pass quickly
The great danger Is when an elephant
Is just turning into a rogue. Every
elephant turns rogue sooner or later
and they never recover. They may be
tractable for a time after quietine
down. but the attack will return, and
then probably a keeper will be killed
The female elephants turn rogues ear
lier and are more violent than the
males, and the females are more dan
gerous In ordinary times.
Elephants form great attachments
for certain men and bitter hatreds OF
others, a hatred that means murder
when the opportunity arrives. But the
love Of an elephant for Its keeper Will
not deter 1t from killing him when the
outbreak comes.
There was one notorious elephant
who travelled with a score OF circuses
under different names and was hnaily
executed, who loved one man. a friend
of mine, as never maiden loved him.
She would do anything for him. He
drank. She cared for him and drove
away every one who tried to come near
when he was drunk and asleep under
her feet. He was discharged from
several circuses and each time TOOK
the elephant no one else being able to
handle her. The owners Of the shows
understood that to discharge him was
to lose the beast, and tacitly she be-
came his property. But she In one
rampage trampled him until he Is a
cripple for life, and killed one OF the
rescuers. defending fiercely the man
she had crushed.
Good elephant men, ones who can
train the animals. command big sala-
ries one whom / know receiving $3.50
a week, but the ordinarily bull men,
recruited from among the canvas hands
or laborers who have no fear, receive
small salaries and accept the positions
because the work Is easier, being will
ing to risk their lives to escape hard
work. These men. Of course, are under
competent trainers-Cleveland Plain