ANIMAL CHUMS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 144132, 30 June 1913, Page 8

ANIMAL CHUMS.

In the New York Hippodrome a short time ago a remarkable friendship existed between a baby elephant, and a large hoarhound, both belonging to Mr. George Power. The dog was in the habit of going regularly every morning to a butcher's shop close by tho Hippodrome, where the butcher would give him a goodly parcel of bones and scraps of meat wrapped in brown paper, rho deg would ,_go straight home to the Hippodrome, iav Iho parcel down in front of the bale elephant, and wait patiently until the young animal had turned out tho contents on the boor. Not oaring for meat, he would blow at it with his little trunk, and then take no further notice of it. This was the moment when the hoarhound would corne forward and take it all up ag«*in—hone bv bone and scrap by scrap—carry it over to his own kennel, and then make a good breakfast at his ease. But he was never once known to attempt to eat it. without first offering it to ms little friend. Also, when he. had cake or biscuit, tho dog would offer it first to the young elephant.. But this was a different matter. Not a bit or a scrap did tho little elephant give back 10 his faithful friend. Once or twice, when watching-them, I was amused to see that the dog, after waiting.patiently ami watching the other s enjoyment, would very cautiously put one paw forward as though to take a little bit ot the dainty. But at tho feast sign ot such an action tho little elephant would lift mi his trunk and his voice and trumpet his loudest, vastly indignant that the dog should try to get any. And then Die funniest thing was to watch the dog’s expression ! ~ ’ A most peculiar friendship has existed for several years between one of . the giraffes and a bantam rooster at thc Barnmn and Bailey circus. The little rooster self-satisfied and conceited as all bantams are, always stays just outside tho giraffe’s enclosure, sometimes strutting‘along tho ground or else sitting on the railing, crowing at all sorts of times, bv dav and night., the giraffe will look down on him. watch him crowing, and onco in a while try to reach him with his long black tongue. At other times the rooster will fiy up and sit on the giraffe s back or sloping neck, and crow there! As a general rule "draffes arc terribly nervous, sensitive creatures, and some w r ould be ternffod at tho unusualness of such a thing, but this giraffe takes it all quietly, turns his head and looks: at the bantam with his large, beautiful eyes, puts out Ins tongue, which, the rooster dodges most skilfully, and takes no further notice, no matter how many times he crows or how many times he tumbles, off the giraffe's sloping neck and flies up again —all in the noisy, fussy manner that all bantams have. . . Tho cubs of will animals rarely become friendly with one another. As a rule they fight so fiercely and vindictively that! unless separated, one or the other is eventually killed.. But in the Dublin Zoological Gardens, in Ireland, two little lion cubs and two little tiger cubs aro on the most friendly terms, and play together as though they were all of one family. This same sort, of thing was found in the Amsterdam Zoological Gardens a short time ago. A .tiger cub and a puma cub lived together in tlie most perfect harmony tor months. But when, with increasing age, their natural fierce instincts asserted themselves, and they showed sio-ns of quarrelling, to prevent any cliaucc of an accident they were separated before they had an actual light.— Miss Helen Vclvin, in the St. Nicholas Magazine. ______