Elephants Fret At Loss Of Mahouts During The Recent Moslem Outrages

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 40, 23 April 1948, Page 7

Elephants Fret At Loss Of Mahouts During The Recent Moslem Outrages

When an attack on the Moslems began in Patiala, one of the Indian States which have been involved in the recent fighting between Moslem and Hindu, the Maharaja’s mahouts, or “elephant boys,” fled in terror. From the day of their departure the royal elephants fretted, refused all food and even water, and lay down seemingly to die. None of the palace officials could tempt them to break their fast. So the Maharaja ordered that all the refugee camps be searched for the twenty missing mahouts. Thfe was done, and they were* eventually found and escorted back to the capital under royal favour and protection.

With the return of the mahouts the elephants immediately renewed their interest in life and, in spite of their long fast, rapidly improved in condition.

This affection of the elephant for his mahout is not exceptional. Livy, the Roman historian, describes how Hannibal’s elephants were only induced to cross the River Rhone because the oldest among them saw her‘‘keeper cross the bridge of swaying rafts and trusted him enough to be coaxed to follow, thus leading the way for the baggage train. The Maharaja’s elephants have had a happier fate than Hannibal’s who followed their keepers until, all but two, they perished in the extreme cold of the Alps. Many people think of the trained elephant only as an industrious and intelligent worker. He is also an exceptionally faithful and affectionate friend.