ELEPHANT COURT-MARTIAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18019, 18 February 1922, Page 2 (Supplement)

ELEPHANT COURT-MARTIAL.

INDIAN ARMY CUSTOM.

FLOGGING ORDERED OFFENDER.

" To-day," said my brother, " I am going to show you something that you have never seen before and probably will never see again," says a writer in the Daily Mail. I was on a visit to the wonderful city of Hyderabad, ih the Tast State of the same name, ruled by the well-known Nizam. My brother, who was on the staff of the British Resident, knew of everything interesting that was happening thorc, aud had already given me, a week of most extraordinary sight seeing, Wo set off, and soon reached tho Elephant Battery Lines. This section of tho State " gunjners" is composed of field guns, each drawn by a single elephant in place of tho usual team of horses or mules.

Soon the call of a shrill trumpet summoned the elephants, some eighty in number, whose mahouts (drivers) quickly marshalled them to form threo sides of a large square. >

After a few minutes of tense expectation, an elephant was marched into the square. Ho was riderless and obviously in disgrace, being marched one on either side of him. He showed the greatest uneasiness, seeming to realise that he was '" in for it."

A battery officer now stepped forward with a charge-sheet and, to my amazement, proceeded to read it in a loud voice to the tremblfnjr delinquent. A free translation would run something like this:

" No. 37, SOlitary Elophant Suleiman, you have, in a moment of wicked and uncontrolled temper, cruelly slain your estimable and kind mahout, Mohammed Ali, thus causing grief to his family, loss to the State, disgrace to the battery, and vexation to our Most August Ruler, whose name be blessed.

" For this thy sin thou ait sentenced to receive ton strokes of the chain and to forfeit thine arrack for seven days.''

The "prisoner" now began to evince aigns of more and more nervousness, shuffling about, quivering, and giving little shrill trumpetings of distress. Ono would

have thought he bad understood every word of the charge and sentence, and was shaken with remorse and terror.

The sentence waß carried out immediately. The culprit was led unwillingly to the whipping-post, or rather four whipping-posts, of enormous thickness and strength, to whioh he was firmly fastened by his legs.

Tho two " police" elephants took up a position a little to the rear, facing each other, and eaoh holding with his trunkone of the ends of a long iron chain, This they swung simultaneously while the mahouts counted: . " Ek. Do, Theen, Maro I" (Strike). Then .the chain was brought with a resounding thwack against the hindquarters of the offender, who shook the square with his screams and heavy struggles. However, there was no escape for him, and he had to go through " ten of the best." He was then led away, looking very dejected and sorry.for himself.

My brother told me that thelloss s of the arrack (a very potent liquor distilled from rice) would hit poor old Suleiman very hard, as every elephant dearly loves his evening tot of grog.

It is very rarely that an elephant who has been court-martialled and punished has been known to repeat his offence, even under the greatest provfcaibi.