A Herd Of Elephants Is
Discovered By Rubber Hunters Or By Depredations On Plantations, And
The Whole Village, Men, Women, Children, Babies And Dogs Turn Out
Into The Forest And Stalk The Monsters Into A Suitable Ravine,
Taking Care Not To Scare Them.
When they have gradually edged the
elephants on into a suitable place, they fell trees and wreathe them
very
Roughly together with bush rope, all round an immense
enclosure, still taking care not to scare the elephants into a rush.
This fence is quite inadequate to stop any elephant in itself, but
it is made effective by being smeared with certain things, the smell
whereof the elephants detest so much that when they wander up to it,
they turn back disgusted. I need hardly remark that this
preparation is made by the witch doctors and its constituents a
secret of theirs, and I was only able to find out some of them.
Then poisoned plantains are placed within the enclosure, and the
elephants eat these and grow drowsier and drowsier; if the water
supply within the enclosure is a pool it is poisoned, but if it is a
running stream this cannot be done. During this time the crowd of
men and women spend their days round the enclosure, ready to turn
back any elephant who may attempt to break out, going to and fro to
the village for their food. Their nights they spend in little bough
shelters by the enclosure, watching more vigilantly than by day, as
the elephants are more active at night, it being their usual feeding
time.
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