The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-09-23
How the Elephant Got His Trunk
by A'"' &
By Rudyard Kipling.


In the High and Far-On Times, the
Elephant, O Best Beloved, had nc
trunk He had only a blackish, bulgy
nose, as big as a boot, that he coulo
wriggle about from side to side; but he
couldn't pick up things with it. But
there was one Elephant-a new Ele-
phant-an Elephants child-who was
full of 'satiable curiosity, and that
means he asked ever so many ques-
tons And, he lived in Africa, and
he filled all Africa with his satiaDle
Ostrich, why her tail feathers grew
just so, and his tall aunt the Ostrich
spanked him with her hard, hard claw.
He asked his tall Uncle the Giraffe,
tall uncle, the Giraffe, spanked him
with his hard, hard hoof. And still he
was full of 'satiable curiosity! He
asked his broad aunt, the Hippopota-
mus, why her eyes were red, and his
broad aunt. the Hippopotamus, spanked
him with her broad, broad hoof; and
he asked his hairy uncle, the Baboon,
why melons tasted just so, and his
hairy uncle, the Balloon, spanked him
with his hairy, hairy paw. And still he
was full of 'satiable curiosity! He
asked questions about everything that
he saw, or heard, or felt, or smelt, or
touched and all his uncles and his
aunts spanked him. And still he was
full of 'satiabIe curiosity!
One fine morning in the Middle Of the
Procession of the Equinoxes this 'sati-
able Elephants Child asked a few fine
questions that he had never asked be-
fore. He asked: What does the Croc-
odile have for dinner?' Then every
body said 'Iiush!" in a loud and dret-
full tone, and they spanked him imme-
diately and directly, without stopping,
for a long time.
BY and by, when that was finished,
he came upon Kolokolo Bird sitting in
the middle of wait-a-bit thorn-bush,
and ne said: MY father has spanked
me. and my mother has spanked me;
all my aunts and uncles spanked me
for nay 'satiable curiosity; and still I
want to know what the Crocodile has
for dinner!''
Then Kolokolo Bird said, with a
mournful cry, Go to the banks of the
great grey-green, greasy Limpopo
River, all set about with fewer-trees.
and and out!''
That very next morning this 'sati-
able Elephants Child took hundred
pounds of bananas (the little short red
kindl, and hundred pounds of sugar
cane (the long. purple kind, and seven
teen melons 1.-THE greeny-crackly kind),
and said to all his dear families,
Goodbye. J. am going to the great,
greasy Limpopo River, all
set about with fever-trees, to find out
what the Crockodile has for dinner"
And they all spanked him. once more
for luck, though he asked them most
politely to stop.
Then he went away a little warm,
but not at all astonished.
5. Now, you must know and under
stand, O Best Beloved, that till that
ute, this 'satiable Elephants Child had
never seen Crocodile, and did not
know what one was like. It was all
his 'satiable curiosity.
The first thing that he, found was
a Bi-Colored-Python-R curl
ed round a rock.
Scuse me-" said the Elephants
Child, most politely, but have you seen
such a thing as Crockodile in these
proniscuous parts?"
Have I seen a Crocodile?' said the
neutrality-suspicious. Rock-Snake, in a
voice Of dretful scorn. What will
YOU ask me next?'
..Scuse me- said the Elephants
Child, but could You kindly tell me
what he has for dinner?'
Then the B-Colored- Python-Rock-
Snake uncoiled himself very quickly
from the rock and spanked the Ele-
plants Child with his scalesome, fail
some tail.
That is odd said the Elephants
Child, because my father and my
mother. and my uncle and nay aunt
not to mention my other, aunt. the
Hippopotamus. and my other uncle,
the Balloon, have all spanked me for
NY 'satiable curtiosity-and / suppose
this is the same thing
So he said goodbye very politely to
the Neutrality-suspicious. Rock Snake,
ard helped to coil him up on the rock
again, and went on. a little warm, but
not at all astonished, eating melons
and throwing the rind about, because
he could not pick it up, till he trod
asS8S asSas SsSasSaS ssSaS