WD540(65)

‘The Elephant Pen, and Wild Elephant taming.’

THIS exhibition, which was got up for the entertainment of the Mission, did not appear to be necessarily the process by which the noble and sagacious Elephant is tamed to man’s use in Burmah; as another, simpler, and either more humane or more skilful course was exhibited in the case of a second wild one (described in the Report page 122), but was probably a sort of dramatic adaptation of the ‘essential’ to the ‘entertaining’, for the amusement of Royalty of less refinement than the present King. The animal, after being decoyed into the arena here represented, is seen charging his assailants, who by shouting, teazing, poking, and some pricking him from behind with spears, have drawn upon them his fury, and are rushing from before him between the massive pillars of the double stockade, against which the poor brute, driving his head with the force of a battering-ram, shook the fabric from end to end, and repeatedly retired wounded and bleeding. At first, when less excited, his ingenious attempts to arrest the foe were amusing. He would stand still, and stretching out his hind leg, endeavour, as it appeared, to entice them to touch it, in order, by knowing their proximity and position, to wheel round upon them. After, at length, being wearied out, two beams of the outer barrier were drawn aside, between which he rushed in, when the beams swinging back into their places, fixed him in a narrow stall, through the enormous piles of which the enraged animal literally plunged his tusks, until riven and shattered there appeared but a trifle wanting to complete an opening for escape. This was prevented by the hind legs having, by this time, been secured, when, endeavouring to turn in his stall, he struggled — reared — and fell over upon his side-motionless. — The poor animal was dead. — This result appeared to be not that of intentional cruelty, but of stupidity — a bungling — the absence of the commonest ingenuity in contrivance; wanting which, the poor creature was tormented, worried, and goaded into something like madness. It was supposed that in falling over he had either choked himself or broken his back.