ut the other to the
ground as often as it was attempted to pass the noose under it, I saw
the decoy watch her opportunity, and when his foot was again raised,
suddenly push in her own leg beneath it, and hold it up till the noose
was attached and drawn tight.

One could almost fancy there was a display of dry humour in the manner
in which the decoys thus played with the fears of the wild herd, and
made light of their efforts at resistance. When reluctant they shoved
them forward, when violent they drove them back; when the wild ones
threw themselves down, the tame ones butted them with head and
shoulders, and forced them up again. And when it was necessary to keep
them down, they knelt upon them, and prevented them from rising, till
the ropes were secured.

At every moment of leisure they fanned themselves with a bunch of
leaves, and the graceful ease with which an elephant uses his trunk on
such occasions is very striking. It is doubtless owing to the
combination of a circular with a horizontal movement in that flexible
limb; but it is impossible to see an elephant fanning himself without
being struck by the singular elegance of motion which he displays. The
tame ones, too, indulged in the luxury of dusting themselves with sand,
by flinging it from their trunks; but it was a curious illustration of
their delicate sagacity, that so long as the mahout was on their necks,
they confined themselves to flinging the dust along their sides and
stomach, as if aware, that to throw it over their heads and back would
cause annoyance to their riders.

One of the decoys which rendered good service, and was obviously held in
special awe by the wild herd, was a tusker belonging to Dehigame
Rata-mahatmeya. It was not that he used his tusks for purposes of
offence, but he was enabled to insinuate himself between two elephants
by wedging them in where he could not force his head; besides which they
assisted him in raising up the fallen and refractory with greater ease.
In some instances where the intervention of the other decoys failed to
reduce a wild one to order, the mere presence and approach of the tusker
seemed to inspire fear, and insure submission, without more active
intervention.

I do not know whether it was the surprising qualities exhibited by the
tame elephants that cast the courage and dexterity of the men into the
shade, but even when supported by the presence, the sagacity, and
co-operation of these wonderful creatu