CAPTURE OF A RHINOCEROS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 4097, 8 June 1881, Page 4

CAPTURE OF A RHINOCEROS.

A gentleman writes from Calcutta to Land and Water respecting tho capture of a rhinoceros for the Calcutta Zoological Gardens. He sayß -.—When our old rhinoceros died, about four months ago, I wroto to all tho neighbouring princeß and Powers having rhinoceros in their jungles, asking them to try and catch a now rhinoceroß for us, and I havo a fair collection of pronußea of tho bost intentions on tho part of many great and good mon to catch a rhinoceros for us this cold weathor. But 1 luckily alao wrote to an old native friend named Soyd Typmid Ali, who was a polico officer under me in Ohitlagong 35 years ago, and is now a deputy magistrate of high rank atationod in the district of Backergungo,

adjoining the Sundorbrun, in which a few rhinoceros are still to be found. My old friend kindly undertook the task, and having found a suitable agent in one Ramjan Ali, a hardy and intelligent man from Chitiagong, Kumjan Ali waa despatched in a boat into the Sunderbrun, about three months ugo, with four native huntsmen accustomed to kill tigers and rhinoceros in that inhospitable region of swamp and jungle. In the course of time they shot threo rhinoceros, the last of which was a female with a young one about eighteen months old (so far as I can guess). When the mother was shot the young one would not leavo its mothcr'a body, and the men think they might have easily caught it the first day ; but they thought it was too big to be. caught by hand, so they dug pitfalls in convenient places near the mother's body, and for some daya tried, without success, to drive the young animal into'a pitfall. At last they managed to find the young one on the side of a tidal ditoh, full of rich, soft mud, into which they pushed or drove it, and as it was struggling in the deep mud, one of the huntsmen pluckily jumped on its back and held on by its ears, whilst tho othera hustled it until a rope waa got to secure the captive, after which he was safely conveyed on board the boat and brought to Calcutta, where he now adorns our Zoo. Ho Btanda nearly three feet high, and from the end of hia snout to the i tip of hia tail ho must be six feet long. His body is aa big round as that of a Shetland pony ten hands high. In fact, whon you see him you cannot help feeling that the only way to catch him waa to jump on his back and lay hold of his large projecting ears. I tell you the tale as it was told to me bv the man Ramyan Ali, who brought the rhinoceros straight to me, whon of course I asked him to tell me how they had contrived to catch such a big animal.