again brought up, and gradually get him nearer to the tree, while the people tie him still more securely. With the assistance of the tame elephants he is harnessed, and conducted to his proper station, where he is left in charge of a keeper, who is appointed to attend and instruct him, and four or five inferior servants, in order to assist, and supply food and water, till he becomes sufficiently tractable to fetch his own food.

The first object of the keeper is to gain his confidence, and, for this purpose, he constantly supplies him with food, and soothes and caresses him in various But sometimes he finds it necessary to ways. threaten, and even to goad him with a long stick pointed with iron; but more generally he coaxes and flatters him, scratching his head and trunk with a long bamboo, split at one end into several pieces, and driving away the flies from any sores occasioned by the hurts and bruises he got by his efforts to escape. The keeper also keeps him cool, by squirting water over his body. In a few days he advances cautiously to his side, and pats and strokes him with his hand, speaking all the while to him in a soothing tone of voice, and in a short time he begins to know his keeper, and to obey his commands. The keeper next gets upon his back from one of the tame elephants, and as the animal becomes more tractable, he advances gradually forward, till at last he is permitted to seat himself on his neck, from which place he afterwards regulates all his motions. The iron hook with which they direct him is pretty heavy, about sixteen inches long, with a straight

spike, advancing a little beyond the curve of the hook. When the keeper wishes to turn him, he catches one of his ears with this instrument, and by pressing it into his skin, makes him move in any required direction. While he is thus in training, the tame elephants lead out the others in turn, for the sake of exercise, and also to ease their legs from the cords with which they are tied, and which are apt to gall them severely, unless they are regularly slackened and shifted. In the course of five or six weeks, the elephant becomes obedient to his keeper, his fetters are taken off by degrees, and generally in about five or six months he suffers himself to be conducted by his keeper from one place to another. Care, however, is always taken not to let him approach his former haunts, lest a recollection of the freedom he enjoyed there should induce him to recover his liberty again. The obedience to his conductor seems to proceed partly from a sense of gratitude, as it is in some measure voluntary; for whenever an elephant takes fright, or is determined to run away, all the exertions of the keeper cannot prevent him, even by beating or digging the pointed iron hook into his head. The animal then totally disregards the feeble efforts of his conductor, and shows how easily he could shake him off, or pull him down with his trunk, and dash him to pieces. Accidents of this kind happen almost every year, especially to those keepers who attend the large males; but they are generally owing to their own carelessness and neglect.

Mr. John Corse (whose interesting communi

cation to the Asiatic Transactions has furnished the foregoing particulars respecting the capture and training of the elephant) relates an anecdote of a male elephant which had been taken about a year, and was travelling in company with some other elephants towards Chittagong, laden with a tent, and some baggage. Having come upon a tiger's track, which the elephant soon scented, he took fright, and ran off to the woods, in spite of the efforts of the driver. On entering the wood the driver saved himself by springing from the elephant, and clinging to the branch of a tree under which he was passing. When the elephant got rid of his driver, he soon contrived to shake off his load. As soon as he ran away, a trained female was despatched after him, but could not get up in time to prevent his escape; she, however, brought back his driver, and the load he had thrown off, and the party proceeded without any hope of ever seeing him again. Eighteen months after this, when a herd of elephants had been taken, and had remained several days in the inclosure, till they were enticed into the outlet, then tied and let out in the usual manner, one of the drivers, viewing a male very attentively, declared he resembled the one which had run away. This excited the curiosity of every one to go and look at him; but when any person came near, the animal struck at him with his trunk, and, in every respect, appeared as wild and outrageous as any of the other elephants. At length an old hunter coming, and examining him narrowly, declared that he was the very elephant that had made his escape about eighteen

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months before. Confident of this, he boldly rode up to him on a tame elephant, and pulling him by the ear, ordered him to lie down. The animal seemed quite taken by surprise, and instantly obeyed the word of command, uttering at the same time a peculiar shrill squeak through his trunk, as he had been formerly known to do, by which he was immediately recognised by every person who had been acquainted with this peculiarity. "Thus," says Mr. Corse, we see that this elephant, for the space of eight or ten days, during which he was in the inclosure, and even while he was being tied in the outlet, appeared equally wild and fierce as the boldest elephant then taken, so that he was not even suspected of having been formerly taken, till he was conducted from the outlet. The moment, however, he was addressed in a commanding tone, the recollection of his former obedience seemed to rush upon him at once, and without any difficulty he permitted a driver to be seated on his neck, who in a few days made him as tractable as ever."

The history of the elephant contained in the foregoing sketch is illustrative rather of man's dominion than of the animal's sagacity. It is not, of course, intended to compare the intelligence of the elephant with that of his conqueror; but it may be well to consider whether the many estimable qualities which we are about to describe, exerted, it is true, in the low degree which belongs to mere animal nature, may not serve to remind us of our various duties, and to suggest the necessity of exercising the superior powers bestowed on ourselves, and con