Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1913-06-14
PICKING UP A LOAD

UP A LOAD
to browse in peace until the follow
ing morning. After five days work
they receive two days complete rest.
or three days II the spell has been an
arduous one. In January. or early
February, they are removed to ever
green forests, where they will. even
during the ensuing hot months. be
able to find abundant food and water.
and. being called upon to do no work
whatever, they soon become fat and
ready for new seasons labors.
Work is Heavy.
The foregoing account of the ele-
plants working program makes It's
lot appear remarkably easy one. An
average of four or five hours day
for FIVE days of the week. complete
rest on the other two. and during five
months of the year no work at all
at first sight the elephant seems to be
in clover. 1t must, however. be borne
In mind. first. that the work 1t per-
forms is the heaviest done by any ami
NAL in the world; secondly as already
stated. that 1t is a nocturnal animal.
unaccustomed in its wild state even
to travel. much less to work. In the
heat of the day Easy as Its hours
may sound, experience shows that
they cannot be safely increased. For,
IL the elephant is the most powerful
animal in the world, 1t is also one of
the most delicate. Not only Is 1t terri
bly, liable to surra and anthrax. dis
eases prevalent among all the cattle
of the country, but heart failure and
exhaustion are also common. while ac-
cidents, such as snake bites. are often
fatal. Owners naturally do not care
to, risk unnecessary exposure to the
sun to the already lengthy list OF
causes which produce death. causes
from which, despite all their precau-
tions, the teak companies of Siam
must reckon annually to lose between
Ave and ten per cent of their stock,
The increasing scarcity. and conse'
quently increasing value. of elephants
Is indeed already a. matter of grave
concern to all interested In the teak
business. whereas ten or fifteen
years ago "a good "tusker" might be
purchased for 1000 rupees. three
times that sum is now sometimes de-
manded, while cows and "hines"--i g..
tuskless males-vary. In price from
5000 to 5000 rupees These prices
speak for themselves and need no
comment.
Great Care Taken of caivea.
The majority of the elephants now
working timber have been caught In
the wild state and tanned. But the ami
mails also breed fairly well In cap,
tiyity, and, needless to. Say, great care
is taken of the calves, From the age
OF four to six they are usually placed
with a. native trainer, who accustoms
them to dragging small logs or carry
ing light loads. The animal Is. as
rule, kept for transport purposes till
between it's fifteenth or twentieth
year. by which time 1t is beginning to
attain something like its full growth
and strength. From this time onward.
should 1t be docile and tractable, II
will become q regular worker Ele-
phants vary, of course. l. their dispo-
sitions as much as any other race OF
animals; some seem to be incurable
savage and vicious. Such cases are,
however, exceptional and are proba-
bly due as a rule more to mistakes OF
treatment than to innate tendencies.
Should It succeed In evading the nu-
merous causes of death to which It 10
liable, an elephant will be able to
work up to its fiftieth or sixtieth year.
after which 1t gradually begins to de-
cline. The natural term of Its life
cannot be exactly determined.