Copy 1, Volume 4

An historical miscellany of the curiosities and rarities in nature and art. Comprising new and entertaining descriptions of the most surprising volcanos, caverns, cataracts, whirlpools, waterfalls, earthquakes, thunder, lightning, and other wonderful and stupendous phenomena of nature.

Date:
[1794-1800]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An historical miscellany of the curiosities and rarities in nature and art. Comprising new and entertaining descriptions of the most surprising volcanos, caverns, cataracts, whirlpools, waterfalls, earthquakes, thunder, lightning, and other wonderful and stupendous phenomena of nature. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    fiiffers hinifelf to be condudled by the mahote from one place to anotlier : care, however, is always taken not to let him approach lus former haunts, left a recolledlion of the freedom he there en- joyed fliould induce him again to recover his liberty. This obedience to his condudtor feems to proceed partly from a fenfe of generofity, as it is in fome meafure voluntary ; for, whenever an elephant takes fright, or is deterntined to run away, all the exertions of the mahote cannot prevent him, even by beating or digging tlie pointed iron hook into his head, with which lie directs him ; on inch an occafion the animal feems to difiegard tliefe feeble efforts, otherwife lie would fhake or pull him off with his trunk, and dafh him in pieces. Accidents of this kind happen almoff every year, efpecially to thofe iiiahotes who attend the large goondahs ; but fiich accidents are in general owing entirely to their own carelelfnefs and negledl. It is neceflTary to treat the males with much greater feverity than the females, to keep them in awe ; but it is too common a pradtice among the mahotes, either to be negligent in ufing proper meafures to render their elephants docile, or to trud too much to their good nature before they are thoroughly acquainted with their dil'politions. The iron hook, with which they direct him, is pretty heavy, about fixteen inches long, with a (Iraight Ipike advancing a little beyond the curve of the hook, fo that altogether it is exadlly like that which terrymen or boatmen ufe faftened to a long pole. In this account of the procefs for catching and taming elephants, we have ufed the mafeuline gender to avoid circumlocution, as both males and females are treated in the fame manner ; the former are feldom fo docile, but, like the riiales of other animals, are fiercer, Wronger, and more untradlable, than the females. Before we conclude, it may be proper to obferve, that young elephants fuck conffantly with their mouths, and never with their trunks, as Bufton has alferted ; a conclulion he made merely from conjedturc, and the great and various ufes to which they are well adapted and applied by every elephant. T he mode of connection between the male and female is now af- ccrtained beyond the pofTibility of a doubt; as Mr. Buller, Lieut, Hawkins, and many others, faw a male copulate with a female, after they were fecured in the keddah, in a manner exadfly fimilar to the conjundfion of the horfe with a mare. This fadf entirely overturns what has been fo often related concerning the fuppofed delicacy of this ufeful animal, and a variety of other hypothefes, which are equally void of foundation. The exadt time an elephant goes with young, has iiof yet been afeertained, but it cannot be lefs than two years, as an elephant brought fprth a young one twenity-one months and three days after the was taken. She was obferved to be with young in April or May 1788, and flie was only taken in January preceding; fo that it is very likely (he nuift have had connedfion with the male fome months before (he waj fecured, otherwife they could not difeover that (he was with young, as a foetus of lefs than fix months cannot well be (uppofed to make any alteration in the fize or (hape of fo large an animal. I'he young one, a male, was produced Odfober 16, 1789, and appeared in every refped^ to have arrived at its full time. He was thirty-five inches high at his birth, and grew four inches in nearly as many months. Elephants are always meafured at tfie (houlder; for the arch or curve of the back.
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