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 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
"It is a curious circumstance, mentioned by Herodotus, and greatly discussed
since his time, that there is a small bird called the trochilus that fearlessly
enters the mouth of the crocodile, and relieves it of the leeches and flies that
disturb it. The bird and the crocodile seem to be on the most friendly terms;
and it is thought by some writers that the bird performs the additional service
of sentinel to its huge friend, and warns him of the approach of danger."

TROCHILUS AND CROCODILE.

Fred suggested that it was just possible that the bird was only an inquisitive
fellow, and finding the crocodile's mouth open, he looked in to see what sort
of a house it would make. And the crocodile, on his part, did not think the
little bird was large enough to pay him for shutting his jaws on it; and so the
intruder escaped solely on account of his diminutive size.
"When you see a crocodile or an alligator asleep on a bank," the Doctor
continued, "you can, perhaps, get a good shot by creeping near enough to
send a bullet under his fore-leg. The skin there is not protected by scales, and
a bullet will penetrate it. Especially if you have explosive balls that burst on
the moment of concussion, you can tear a great hole inside your game, and
seriously interfere with his digestion. I shot one once in this way on a sand-
bar in the Nile, a few miles above the first cataract; he was nearly twenty feet
long, and it took my men a whole day to remove his skin. I was within thirty
paces of him when I fired, and, as I had good aim, I sent the bullet exactly
where I wished, he gave a few convulsive movements with his tail, and then
stretched out stiff and dead."
The Doctor paused; and the consul took up the conversation with an account
a friend had given him of a fight between a bear and an alligator in Western
Louisiana.
"My friend was out hunting one day," said the consul, "and was suddenly
startled by a loud roaring in the bushes not far off. He cautiously crept near,
expecting to see a couple of bulls preparing for combat; what was his
astonishment to see a large bear and a full-grown alligator eying each other,
and poising themselves for an encounter.
"Bruin was on his hind legs, his mouth was covered with foam, and there
were several streams of blood on his black coat. The alligator was on the
tiptoes of all his legs, and he lashed his tail furiously, and kept his great jaws
moving as if trying their ability to close on the bear at the proper moment.
"The bear growled, and the
alligator roared like a bull; and it
was his roaring that had attracted
my friend's attention. They had
evidently indulged in a clinch
before he saw them, and were
making ready for a second round.
For fully a minute they remained
in the attitudes in which he first
beheld them, and neither could
make up his mind how to take the
best hold. Finally Bruin dropped
on all fours, and ran at the
alligator; the latter met him by
throwing his head and body to
one side, and delivering a blow
with his tail that knocked the bear
over on the ground, and rolled
THE ALLIGATOR AND THE BEAR. him several yards away. The blow
sounded as though it had been
given with a club with the force of half a dozen men, and it is safe to say that
the strongest man would have been killed by it.
"The bear was not discouraged, for he picked himself up and ran once more
at the alligator. He did it three times in succession, and with the same result;
the alligator knocking him over each time.
"Bruin now saw that he must change his tactics. He made his next run in such
a way as to avoid the tail, and he was fairly on the alligator's body before the
blow could be given. The great tail was lashed furiously from side to side, but
to no purpose, as it could not hit the bear either way. The force of the charge
upset the alligator, and turned him completely over; the bear's jaws closed on
one of his fore-legs, while the shaggy paws were clasped around the scaly
body. The reptile was in a bad way, as his great weapon of warfare, the tail,
was useless; and his neck was not flexible enough to enable him to bite. He
roared in despair, and then bethought himself of a new trick.
"His tail, as he lashed it around, happened to hit a small tree; he pushed
against this tree as with a lever, and by using it as a fulcrum he managed to
wriggle along to the bank. Then another convulsive movement threw him and
his antagonist into the water.
"The bank from which they fell was about four feet high, and they tumbled in
with a loud splash. They disappeared below the surface, and were out of sight
for nearly two minutes. The bear came up, and, after scrambling to the shore,
he gave a brief glance at the stream, to make sure that there was no chance
of renewing the combat; then, shaking the water from his skin, he hurried off
into the forest. My friend could have shot the bear with the utmost ease, but
in consideration for the courage and determination he had shown he did not
do so."
"He was right," said Frank; "such bravery should command respect."
"But how about the alligator's part of the fight?" the Doctor asked.
"As to that," responded the youth, "the alligator deserves no credit. When he
found he could not conquer the bear on equal terms, he sneaked into the
river. He could live in the air or in the water, while the bear could not fight
below the surface of the stream, and could not even live there. All the
alligator had to do was to sink in the water, and the bear must drown or let go
his hold. I like the bear's bravery, but don't think much of the other fellow."
"No more do I," Fred chimed in; "and it is a pity that the alligator could not
have been shot before he rolled from the bank. All the race of crocodiles is a
cruel one, and ought to be exterminated."
"They are fast being driven from existence," said the Doctor. "Twenty-five
years ago they were numerous in the Nile below Luxor; while to-day they are
rarely seen below the first cataract, which is more than a hundred miles above
Luxor. They are also becoming scarce in the rivers of India; and the alligators
in the southern parts of the United States are not nearly as numerous as they
were. Still, there are enough for all the demand that is likely to be made for
them, and anybody who will invent a way of killing them rapidly will confer a
benefit upon the human race."
"In regions where these reptiles abound, the natives have adopted the
sensible plan of destroying the eggs whenever they find a nest. The nests are
made in the sand or on a bank of earth,
and the female alligator usually lays from
twenty to forty—rarely more than the
latter number. They are hatched by the
heat of the sun: the mother does not sit
on the nest like a hen, but she stays in
the neighborhood and fights for their
protection. When the chicks emerge from
the shell they hurry off to the water, or to
a hiding-place in the mud; and they seem
to understand that they will be subject to
many dangers until they get large enough
to defend themselves. Cranes and fish are JUST HATCHED.
fond of them in their tender youth, and
even the fathers of the alligator family seem to mistake them for frogs, and
eat them with apparent delight.
"In some parts of India the natives dig a circular pit, and cover it with sticks
and leaves. The pit surrounds a little island or mound of earth, and is close to
a stream where crocodiles abound. On the mound they fasten a young goat,
and his bleatings during the night attract the crocodiles, who break the slight
floor of sticks with their heavy bodies, and fall into the pit prepared for them.
Heavy stakes are set in the bottom of the pit, and as the reptile falls he is
generally impaled on one or more of them.
"I have read of a famous old crocodile who defied all the ordinary modes of
capture, in one of the rivers of India. Finally an English officer hit upon a trick
that was successful. He put a pound of powder in a can, and attached it to an
electric wire, so that he could explode it at pleasure; then he placed this can
inside the carcass of a sheep, and by means of a rope floated it over where
the crocodile lay. The crocodile rose and swallowed the bait; the officer, who
was standing ready with his electric battery on the shore, completed the
connection of the wires, and an instant afterwards the reptile that had been a
terror to the neighborhood had ceased to exist. The can of powder exploded
in his stomach, and his body, when it came to the surface, was so torn and
distorted that it could hardly be recognized as the remains of a crocodile."
COMING OUT TO SUN HIMSELF.
 CHAPTER XII.
STORIES OF ELEPHANT-HUNTING.—SCENES OF THE
CHASE.
When the topic of crocodiles and their relatives had been exhausted, Fred
reminded the Doctor of his promise to tell them something of the ways of
hunting elephants.
"I was just coming to that," said Doctor Bronson, "and have been trying to
refresh my memory on the subject. I do not know how they hunt elephants in
Siam, but from the appearance of the corral near the elephants' stables, I
infer that the process is pretty nearly the same in all countries where the
elephant is found in a wild state.

AN ELEPHANT FENCE.
"You observed that the corral, or yard, at Ayuthia was constructed of upright
logs set into the earth in the form of a palisade. In Ceylon it is made of heavy
posts, with strong timbers placed horizontally, the whole interlaced and bound
with withes, and braced with slanting posts on the outside. The fence is
generally about fifteen feet high, and the openings in it will easily allow a man
to pass through. At Ayuthia you saw that the posts of the corral permit the
same thing; the fence is like a sieve, that strains men through without
difficulty, but catches the elephants.
 FORM OF A CORRAL.
"Here is the general appearance of the fence," said the Doctor, as he took his
pencil and drew on a sheet of paper, "and here is the shape of the corral. The
corral is a pen, and the word is derived from the Spanish, and means a ring or
enclosure. The space enclosed is generally about five hundred feet long by
half that width, and at one end there is a gate that can be opened and shut
very quickly, and is large enough to permit the passage of but one elephant at
a time. There is an avenue, shaped like the letter V, which leads up to the
corral, and converges on the side where the gate is placed. It is concealed as
much as possible by brushwood, and where it begins it is so slight as to be
hardly perceptible. It extends a long distance into the forest, and a great deal
of skill is required to construct it successfully.

BEGINNING THE DRIVE.

"When the corral has been arranged, and is ready for occupation, the herd is
supposed to be in its vicinity. Eight or ten weeks have been spent in driving in
the elephants; the forest where they roam has been surrounded very
cautiously, and several herds have been driven together so slowly and quietly,
that none of the sagacious beasts has any suspicion that he is being
entrapped. Sometimes hundreds of men are employed in driving in the herds,
and an area is surrounded equal to several counties of an American state. Day
by day the circle grows narrower, and finally the men composing it are able to
build fires ten or twelve feet from each other. Not till then do they consider
the game fairly bagged, and now they throw off all deception and adopt new
tactics. Where before all was still, is now a scene of wild confusion; the men
make a loud noise, with musical and unmusical instruments, and each of them
carries a torch, which he waves wildly in the air. They do this on three sides of
the herd, while the fourth side, in the direction of the corral, is left
conveniently open.

DRIVING INTO THE CORRAL.

"The elephants are frightened, and rush in the desired direction; they now
begin to suspect a snare, and frequently try to break through the line of men
and rush back to their forest home. The men pelt them with the torches, and
strike them with the burning sticks, till they turn around again and go where
they are wanted; gradually they near the end of the corral, and finally a few
of them make their way through the gate and are securely trapped. The
natives rush forward and close the bars of the gate, and the rest of the herd
is permitted to stray a little way back into the woods, but it is carefully kept
from going too far.
"When they find they are caught, the elephants rush wildly round the corral,
trying first one part of the fence and then another, in the hope of escaping.
Wherever they go, they are met at the fence by men with flaming torches;
and they are further terrified by discharges of musketry, and the sound of
horns and trumpets. This performance is kept up for several hours of the day,
and generally through the night; and at daybreak they make ready to secure
the captives, and prepare the corral for a second lot of elephants.
"It is in this work that the elephant shows the peculiarity of his nature, in
using all his sagacity to assist in the capture of his kindred. He seems to know
what is wanted of him, and invariably appears to take great delight in doing
it."
"Elephant nature is not altogether unlike human nature," remarked the
consul, with a smile. "Not a few of our fellow-men, whenever they fall upon
misfortune, are desirous of having others to share it with them."
"It is an old adage that misery loves company," said Fred.
"But I hope it is not a true one," Frank responded. "Perhaps we had better
give the human race the benefit of any doubt on the subject, and say that the
quality we have been talking about is elephant nature, and does not belong to
us."
His proposal was accepted, and the account of elephant-hunting was
resumed.
"The removal of the captives requires a good deal of skill and caution, both on
the part of the tame elephants and on that of the attendants. Here is an
excellent account of this operation:
"The bars which secured the entrance to the corral were cautiously
withdrawn, and two trained elephants passed stealthily in, each ridden by his
mahout—or ponnekella, as he is called in Ceylon—and one attendant, and
carrying a strong collar, formed by coils of rope made from cocoa-nut fibre,
from which hung on each side cords of elk's hide, prepared with a ready
noose. Along with them, and concealed behind them, the head-men of the
cooroowe, or noosers, crept in, eager to secure the honor of taking the first
elephant—a distinction which this class jealously contests with the mahouts of
the chiefs and the temples. He was a wiry little man, nearly seventy years old,
who had served in the same capacity under the Kandyan king, and wore two
silver bangles, which had been conferred on him in testimony of his prowess.
He was accompanied by his son, named Ranghanie, equally renowned for his
courage and dexterity.
"On this occasion ten tame elephants were in attendance; one of which had
been caught only the year before, but was now ready to assist in capturing
others. One was of prodigious age, having been in the service of the Dutch
and English governments in succession, for upwards of a century. The other,
called by her keeper 'Siribeddi,' was about fifty years old, and distinguished
for her gentleness and docility. She was a most accomplished decoy, and
evinced the utmost relish for the sport. Having entered the corral noiselessly,
she moved slowly along with a sly composure and an assumed air of easy
indifference; sauntering leisurely in the direction of the captives, and halting
now and then to pluck a bunch of grass or a few leaves, as she passed. As
she approached the herd, they put themselves in motion to meet her, and the
leader, having advanced in front and passed his trunk gently over her head,
turned and paced slowly back to his dejected companions. Siribeddi followed
with the same listless step, and drew herself up close behind him, thus
affording the nooser an opportunity to stoop under her and slip the noose
over the hind foot of the wild one. The elephant instantly perceived his
danger, shook off the rope, and turned to attack the man. The latter would
have suffered for his temerity, had not Siribeddi protected him by raising her
trunk and driving the assailant into the middle of the herd, when the old man,
being slightly wounded, was helped out of the corral, and his son, Ranghanie,
took his place.
"The herd again collected in a circle, with their heads towards the centre. The
largest male was singled out, and two tame ones pushed boldly in, one on
each side of him, till the three stood nearly abreast. He made no resistance,
but betrayed his uneasiness by shifting restlessly from foot to foot. Ranghanie
now crept up; holding the rope open with both hands, its other extremity
being made fast to Siribeddi's collar, and watching the instant when the wild
elephant lifted its hind foot, he succeeded in passing the noose over its leg,
drew it close, and fled to the rear. The two tame elephants now fell back;
Siribeddi stretched the rope to its full length, and while she dragged out the
captive, her companion placed himself between her and the herd to prevent
any interference.
 SECURING THE CAPTIVES.
"In order to secure him to a tree, he had to be dragged back some twenty or
thirty yards, making furious resistance, bellowing in terror, plunging on all
sides, and crushing the smaller timber, which bent like reeds beneath his
clumsy struggles. Siribeddi drew him steadily after her, and wound the rope
round the proper tree, holding it all the time at its fullest tension, and
stepping cautiously across it when, in order to give it a second turn, it was
necessary to pass between the tree and the elephant.
 SIRIBEDDI'S PRIZE.
"One after the other the herd was secured, in spite of their resistance; and
the whole time consumed in disposing of an elephant, from the moment the
decoys approached him till he was secured to a tree, was about three-
quarters of an hour. The captives tried all possible ways to escape, but it was
of no use; they were fastened to the trees, and the cords were so strong and
so well tied that the greatest exertions of the prisoners were of no effect
whatever. Some of the tricks they practised in endeavoring to escape were
very ingenious, and showed that the elephant in his wild state has the full
development of the sagacity which he displays in captivity. Their strength is
enormous, and sometimes they pull down trees in their struggles.
 THE PRISONERS TIED UP.
"It is a curious circumstance," the Doctor continued, "that the tame elephant
who is assisting at the capture of his kindred never displays the least
sympathy for them; while they, on the other hand, show a great deal of it for
each other. When a captive, who is being dragged to a tree, passes one that
is already tied up, he will stop and twine his trunk around the other's legs and
neck, and manifest in all the ways that he can a deep sorrow for what has
happened.
 A LITTLE HEAD WORK.
"When the animals are secured the corral presents a curious spectacle. The
great beasts are stretched out in various attitudes, their feet fastened to the
trees, and sometimes spread far apart. They moan and bellow for hours
together; they seize hold of the trees with their trunks, and exhaust all their
ingenuity in endeavoring to get free. When all other means have failed, they
will often try to escape by turning somersaults; and it is interesting to see an
elephant balancing himself on his head, and endeavoring to throw his heels in
the air. For awhile they refuse to eat or drink, and sometimes they literally
starve themselves to death. I have heard of several instances where they
have refused to move or eat, and remain motionless for days, till they die. It
is generally the finest elephant of a herd that kills himself in this way; the
natives say he dies of a broken heart, and I am quite inclined to believe that
such is the case. And it sometimes happens that after an elephant has been
tamed, and is thoroughly obedient to his keeper, he will lie down and die on
the very first attempt to harness him.

IN A HEAP OF TROUBLE.
"There is a story of an elephant in Ceylon, which was one of the finest that
had been taken in a long while. He resisted a good deal when first captured;
and when they were removing him from the corral to the stables, a distance
of about six miles, he was so obstinate that the journey occupied several
hours. He escaped once, but was afterwards recaptured and became very
docile; but when he was taken to Colombo, he stopped in front of the gate of
the fort, and would not enter. While they were trying to persuade him to go
inside, he lay down on the ground and died, without the least struggle."
Frank asked in what way the elephants are tamed, after they have been
captured and tied up as the Doctor described.
"They are subdued," said the Doctor, "partly by starvation, and partly by kind
treatment. Hunger is the great force used, as the elephant is not allowed to
have any food until he shows signs of becoming tractable. Sometimes he is
starved for a week or more; but he is allowed to satisfy his thirst to a limited
extent. When he indicates that he has become docile, and is accustomed to
the presence of his keeper, he is released and taken to the stables, where he
is well fed. No attempt is made to harness him for some time, but he is
exercised with the other elephants, and gradually reconciles himself to a
captive state. In nine cases out of ten he never shows the least inclination to
rebel, but accepts his new condition of life with perfect resignation; and, as I
have before told you, he is quite ready and willing to assist in the capture of
his former comrades.
"In some parts of Asia the natives capture elephants by digging deep pits, and
covering them with bushes and leaves, so that the trap is quite concealed.
The herd is then driven in the direction of the pit, and some of the animals fall
into it. A guard is placed over them, and they are kept without food for seven
or eight days, and even for a longer period if they do not submit. When they
are conquered, the sides of the pit are dug down, and they are led out of the
place of their imprisonment. There is a very good story connected with this
mode of capture; it is an old one, and evidently the Eastern version of the
fable of the mouse and the lion, which is in all the story-books."
"Tell it, please," said Fred; and the request was echoed by his cousin.
"I will tell it," said the Doctor, "though I fear you may consider it too juvenile
for you.
"Hundreds of years ago an elephant was taken in a pit in a forest in India. He
bemoaned his fate, and wept aloud. The guard that had been left over him
was asleep under a tree, and a priest who was passing heard his lamentations
and tried to console him.
"'Alas!' said the elephant, 'there can be no consolation for me. I must stay in
this pit till I am subdued, and then I shall be the slave of man. No one can
save me.'
"'Don't be so sure of that,' replied the priest. 'If you have ever done a good
action to anybody, you can call him to your aid, and he will assist you. Think
of some service you have given, and perhaps it will now be of use to you.'
"'I have done services on several occasions,' the elephant answered; 'but
those who were favored were so small that they can now do nothing for a
great body like me.'
"'Tell me one of them,' said the priest.
"'Last year,' said the elephant, 'the prince of this province had captured the
king of the rats, and a great many of his subjects. He had them in earthen
jars, and was about to drown them; but I came along in the night and broke
all the jars, so that the rats ran away and were free.

REFUSING TO MOVE ON.

"'And another time a man had the queen of the tribe of the parrots in a cage,
and hung it on a tree where nobody could reach it. I pulled the tree down and
broke the cage, so that the queen flew away to her companions.'
"Just then the scream of a parrot was heard from a neighboring tree, and the
priest said to the elephant,
"'Call that parrot, and ask him to go and tell his queen to come and see her
benefactor, who is now in trouble?
"The elephant protested that it would be of no use, as the parrot could not
help him in any way, no matter how willing she was to do so. But the priest
insisted, and the elephant obeyed.
"In a little while the queen came, and then the priest told the elephant to
send her with a message to the king of the rats. Away she flew, and told the
rat king how their old benefactor had fallen into a pit.
"The king sent out his messengers to all parts of his dominions, and by the
next morning they were assembled to the number of several millions. The
king ordered them to follow him, and they went to where the elephant was
entrapped. The parrot queen was there ahead of them, and she had brought
millions of her subjects. The guards were now awake, but the parrot queen
talked to them and amused them, and she kept flying off a little way at a
time, till she drew them out of sight of the pit. Then the rats began scratching
at the edge of the pit; and though each of them only threw down a very little
earth at a time, there was soon a large path sloping to where the elephant
stood. At the same time the millions of parrots began breaking little twigs
from the trees, and dropping them into the pit; the elephant piled these twigs
and the earth beneath him, and in a few hours he walked out of the pit, and
away into the forest, where he joined his companions and told them what had
happened.
"'Who would have thought,' he said to his fellow-elephants, 'that the largest
animal in the world could be saved by such insignificant creatures as the
parrot and the rat. Hereafter I will never despise small things, or despair of
being brought out of trouble. Good actions will be rewarded, no matter how
insignificant may be their recipient.'"
"A very pretty story!" exclaimed both the boys in a breath.
"It is a story with a moral," Doctor Bronson answered; "and I leave you to
apply it while we have a little more talk about the elephant."
"A baby elephant is about the most amusing beast in the world; he is
affectionate and playful to a high degree, and there is little difficulty in taming
him. Very often the young elephants are taken in the corrals with their
mothers, whom they follow to the tying-down place, and thence to the stables
when the captives are released from their bonds. A gentleman at Colombo
had one that was sent down to his house from the corral where he was taken,
and he very soon became a favorite with everybody about the place. He
stayed generally near the kitchen, where he picked up a good many things of
which he was fond; and sometimes, when the gentleman was walking in the
grounds, the young giant would come to him and twine his trunk around his
arm, to indicate that he wanted to be taken to the fruit-trees. He used to be
admitted to the dining-room, and helped to fruit at dessert, and he finally got
to coming in at odd times when not invited. On two or three occasions he
managed to break all the glasses on a sideboard, while reaching for some
oranges in a basket, and finally he became so mischievous that he had to be
sent away. While he was at the house the grass-cutters occasionally placed
their loads of grass on his back, and whenever this was done he strutted off
with an air of the greatest pride at the confidence that was shown in him.
After he was sent to the government stables he became very docile; and
when his turn came for work, he performed it to the satisfaction of everybody.

SLIDING DOWN HILL.

"It is said that elephants amuse themselves by sliding downhill; but they do
not use sleds, like boys in America. Natives who claim to have witnessed
these performances say that the huge beasts enter into the sport with great
enthusiasm, and keep it up for hours.
 ELEPHANT-HUNTING ON FOOT.
"Elephants are hunted with the rifle by English and other sportsmen; and
thousands of them have been killed in this way for the sake of their tusks, or
for mere amusement. Their number has been so much diminished by this
means, that in India and Ceylon the government has taken the elephant
under its protection, and it can only be pursued and slaughtered by the
express permission of the officials. At present the paradise of elephant-
hunters is in Africa. The African elephant is much like his Asiatic brother; but
his ear is nearly three times as large as that of the latter, and his skin has
fewer hairs upon it.
"He is a vicious brute, and often turns on his hunter and puts him to a rapid
flight. I have read of an Englishman who was one day chasing an African
elephant, and, after a great deal of manœuvring, got near enough to give him
a shot. It was fortunate for the hunter that he was well-mounted and had a
firm seat in his saddle, as the wounded elephant turned after the shot was
fired and crashed through the bushes in the direction of his assailant. Horse
and rider had a narrow escape, and the two dogs that accompanied the
sportsman came in for a share of the fright. The hunter concluded that he
would let the elephant go his way unmolested; and when the enraged animal
turned back into the forest he was not followed."
"It reminds me," said the consul, "of the story of the army officer in India who
was asked if he found tiger-hunting a pleasant amusement. 'Hunting the tiger,'
said he, 'is very pleasant as long as the tiger is hunted; but when he turns
and hunts you, the pleasure ceases altogether.'"
 THE HUNTER HUNTED.
"It is about the same with the chase of the wild elephant," the Doctor
remarked. As he said it, the servant announced the readiness of something to
eat in the cabin, and the conversation was suspended until the party was
seated at table.
"In some parts of the East," Doctor Bronson continued, "it is the custom for
princes and kings to give grand entertainments in the shape of elephant
fights. Sometimes two elephants are matched together; but quite as often
they are pitted against some other beast. Formerly these fights were carried
on till one of the combatants was dead or severely hurt; but at present an
effort is made to keep them from injuring each other, and the fight is little
more than a series of rather violent pushes from one side of the ring to the
other.
"Mr. Crawfurd, who was sent at the head of an embassy from the Governor-
general of India to Siam and Cochin China in 1821, was present at a tiger and
elephant fight in Saigon. His account is interesting in two ways; it shows the
manner of conducting one of these fights, and gives us a glimpse at the
manners of the Far East sixty years ago. After detailing his reception by the
governor, he says:

"We were invited to be present at an elephant and tiger fight, and for this
purpose we mounted our elephants and repaired to the glacis of the fort,
where the combat was to take place. A great concourse of people had
assembled to witness the exhibition. The tiger was secured to a stake by
a rope tied round his loins, and about thirty yards long. The mouth of the
unfortunate animal was sewn up, and his nails drawn out; he was of
large size, and extremely active. No less than forty-six elephants, all
males and of great size, were seen drawn out in line. One at a time was
brought to attack the tiger.
"The first elephant advanced, to all appearance, with a great show of
courage, and we thought, from his determined look, that he would
certainly have despatched his antagonist in an instant. At the first effort
he raised the tiger on his tusks to a considerable height, and threw him
to the distance of at least twenty feet. Notwithstanding this, the tiger
rallied and sprung upon the elephant's trunk and head, up to the very
keeper, who was upon his neck. The elephant took alarm, wheeled about,
and ran off, pursued by the tiger as far as the rope would allow him. The
fugitive, although not hurt, roared most piteously, and no effort could
bring him back to the charge. A little after this, we saw a man brought up
to the governor, bound with cords, and dragged into his presence by two
officers.
"'This was the conductor of the recreant elephant. A hundred strokes of
the bamboo were ordered to be inflicted upon him on the spot. For this
purpose he was thrown on his face on the ground, and secured by one
man sitting astride upon his neck and shoulders, and by another sitting
upon his feet, a succession of executioners inflicting the punishment.
When it was over, two men carried off the sufferer by the head and heels,
apparently quite insensible.
"'While this outrage was perpetrating, the governor coolly viewed the
combat of the tiger and elephant, as if nothing else particular had been
going forward. Ten or twelve elephants were brought up in succession to
attack the tiger, which was killed at last, merely by the astonishing falls
he received when tossed off the tusks of the elephants. The prodigious
strength of these animals was far beyond anything I could have
supposed. Some of them tossed the tiger to a distance of at least thirty
feet, after he was nearly lifeless, and could offer no resistance. We could
not reflect without horror that these very individual animals were the
same that have for years executed the sentence of the law upon the
many malefactors condemned to death. Upon these occasions, a single
toss, such as I have described, is always, I am told, sufficient to destroy
life.'"
TAKING A NAP.
 CHAPTER XIII.
BANG-PA-IN TO BANGKOK.—STUDIES IN NATURAL
HISTORY AND BOTANY.
As they returned down the river the boat stopped at Bang-pa-in, to enable the
young tourists to have a view of the place. The name means, "City on an
Island," and is a literal description of the situation. The island is not very wide
in proportion to its length, and the boys found that the beauties of the spot
were quite up to the expectation they had formed during their journey up the
river. They walked through the gardens, which were laid out with exquisite
taste, and sat beneath the trees, whose dense foliage afforded a grateful
shade; they were shown through the palace, found it furnished in European
style, and their sharp eyes caught sight of a piano, which gave a hint of the
musical taste of the king. The officer in charge of the place showed an album
of monograms which his majesty had arranged, and some pencil sketches that
were the work of the royal hands. The boys were consoled for the absence of
the king by the reflection that if he had been present the palace would not
have been open to visitors, and some of the interesting sights of Bang-pa-in
would have escaped them.
When they reached the landing to continue their journey, they found a native
boat along-side their own with fruits and other things to sell. By direction of
Doctor Bronson, the interpreter bought a selection of what was in the market;
and, as soon as they were again in motion, the boys employed their eyes and
palates in a scientific investigation of the good things before them.
The first article that they discussed was a green cocoa-nut. Frank wondered
what use they could make of it, and Fred suggested that they might keep it
till it was ripe.
One of the servants speedily put an end to their suspense. With a dexterity
that was evidently the result of long practice, he cut away the husk, and then
made a hole in the shell of the nut large enough for the easy insertion of
one's thumb. The opening revealed the interior of the nut, with a slight
accumulation of white pulp close to the shell, while all the rest of the enclosed
space was filled with milk. When it was thus prepared he handed the nut to
Frank, and immediately opened another, which he gave to Fred.
Frank laughed, and said, "What shall we do with it?"
"Drink the milk, and throw away the shell," replied the Doctor, as he took one
from the hands of the servant, and suited his action to his words.
The boys did as they were directed, and the drink was followed by an
exclamation of delight.

COCOA-NUTS FULL GROWN AND JUST FORMING.

They found the milk of the cocoa-nut a cool and refreshing beverage; and, on
the assurance of the consul that they might take all they wished without fear
of injury to their digestion, they proceeded with the demolition of more and
more nuts, until the basket was emptied. The consul told them that the juice
of the green cocoa-nut was a favorite beverage throughout Siam, and was
considered by some people as far safer to drink than the water of the river.
"There is a good deal of vegetable matter in the river water," said he, "and it
is undoubtedly the cause of derangements of the stomach when freely used.
But the juice of the nut is pure and healthy, and its slightly acid taste makes it
welcome to the palate. It is cool, as you have seen, and the acidity doubtless
causes it to seem to be of a lower temperature than the surrounding
atmosphere."
 THE BREAD-FRUIT.
Fred asked if the famous bread-fruit was in the lot they had bought, and was
rather disappointed at its absence. But a bread-fruit tree was pointed out to
him as they floated down the river, and he made note of the fact that it was
about forty feet high, and had a leaf nearly two feet long. The fruit resembled
a large, very large apple, or perhaps a small melon; and the Doctor told him
that the outer husk furnished a fibre like that of the cocoa-nut, which could be
made into a sort of coarse cloth.
The Doctor further explained that the bread-fruit was baked in the shell, the
same as an oyster is roasted, and that the inner pulp, when thus cooked,
resembled a sweet-potato in taste, and was very nutritious. To the touch it
was not unlike the soft part of a loaf of bread, and its name was due to this
latter quality rather than to its taste. "It forms," said he, "the chief sustenance
of the inhabitants of many of the islands of the South Pacific Ocean, and is to
be found nearly everywhere in the tropics. It was introduced into the West
Indies about a century ago, and its cultivation has been very successful in that
region; later it was planted in Central America, and has become so well known
and used that the natives rely largely upon it for their food. The product of
three trees in some of the Pacific Islands will support a man for a year; and it
is no wonder that he becomes lazy when he has nothing to do but pluck his
food from a tree."
 PINEAPPLE.
When they had finished with the cocoa-nuts, they had a fine pineapple; and
they remarked that its freshness made it sweeter and better than any
pineapple they had ever eaten at home. Frank made a sketch of this fruit,
with its long and sharp-pointed leaves, and then he drew the inside of a fruit
which, for want of a better name, he called a star-apple. It had a purple skin,
and resembled an orange in shape and size; the pulp was white, and, when it
was cut across, the cells for the seeds showed the exact form of a star. Fruit
after fruit was cut, in the hope that one would be found without the star; but
the effort was a complete failure.

STAR-APPLE.
Of course they had oranges in abundance; and they had half a dozen fruits
whose names were quite unknown to them, but which were all delicious. Fred
lamented that the attempt to tell about the flavor of a strange fruit was like
trying to describe the song of a bird, or the perfume of a flower. So they
concluded that the best thing for them to do was to eat the fruit and admire
it; and if anybody wanted to know what it was like, he would refer him to the
article itself, and let him judge of the quality.

A NEW KIND OF FRUIT.

While seated on the deck of the boat, and engaged in testing the peculiarities
of an orange, Frank espied something on a tree that grew close to the water.
Thinking it might be a new kind of fruit, he called the Doctor's attention to his
discovery; the latter said the strange thing was nothing more nor less than
the nest of a bird, and would hardly prove edible. Frank's illusion was broken,
as the Doctor spoke, by a small bird that hopped on a limb in front of the
supposed fruit, and at the same instant the head of another bird appeared
from a hole in the nest. Evidently the nest was constructed of cotton, or
something of the sort, as it was nearly snow-white in color; it hung from the
limb, so that it swayed in the wind, and it was not at all surprising that Frank
had mistaken it for a variety of fruit hitherto unknown to him.
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