November t^ s continence be the means employed by nature for the '✓ w i promotion of the growth and ftrength o f this animal, which are fo confiderably beyond thofe o f any other ? Elephants (excepting fome males, which, being either too old or too young to contend with their ftronger rivals, are hunted away by them) always keep in herds; fo that while fome few are, perhaps, prevented from copulating in the early part of life, and confequently from being enervated, it is, probably, as I faid before, the peculiar formation of their bodies which, after all, proves the greateft obitacle in this point; for the parts o f generation in both fexes are placed about , the middle, juft under the belly, and thofe o f the male are very ihort in proportion to its body. From this peculiarity in their formation moil authors have, without fufficient foundation concluded, that the females are capable of admitting the embraces o f the male in no other manner than lying on their backs. Nay, although no one has ever been able to fay, that he had been an eye-witnefs to this, yet that great naturalift, M. B u f f o n , • Tom. XI. p. 63, looks upon it as fo incontrovertible a point, that he aflures us, he fhould not once have doubted of it, even i f the travellers D e F e y n e s , T a v e r n i e r s , and Bus- s y s did not accord with him, which, however, they do in this particular. He therefore objedts likewife againft Ariftotle, and that with fo much the greater reafon, as this author defcribes their copulation as differing in no other way from that of other quadrupeds, than merely in the female’s lowering her loins on this occafion. Never- thelefs, in order to determine this Angular queftion with more certainty, I let flip no opportunity o f interrogating 2 on on the fubjedt every elephant-hunt'er I faw. To this »775- •query they all agreed in replying, that' with refpedt to the above-mentioned argument, they were moil inclined to approve of the common opinion, i f they had not been differently informed by two o f their companions', J a c o b K o k and M a r c u s P o t g i e t e r , who had adtuallv feen elephants copulate. I met, hoWeVer, only with the former o f thdfe hunters-, who told me, he had likewife him- felf been of opinion, that the female was obliged to lie on her back on this occafion ; till at length, being out along with P o T g i e t e r hunting o f elephants, he had occafion to think otherwife. On a Certain fpot they cattle to, they could reckon about eight elephants, which, on account of the fmall fize of their tuflcs, they took for females, excepting two large ones ; which, making feveral circles found one o f thefe that they took for females, (the only one, perhaps, in rut) frequently, itt.ali probability, by way o f careffing her,, flfuck her with their trunks, till at length fhe threw herfelf dowrt upon her knees, and keeping the fpitte o f her back in a ftiff and extended po- fition, brought her hind feet quite clofe to her fore feet, or fomewlrat beyond them; fo that fhe almoft, as it were, flood upon hef head. In this forced pofture they faw her wait a long while together for the ,carefles o f the males, Who, in fadi, likewife endeavoured to perform the matrimonial rites, but from jealbufy hindered each other, whenever either of them began to mount. After two hours had thus- elapfed, the patience o f our hunters began to tire; and the rather, becaufe, on account of the uneven andftoney nature o f the ground, which, however, had V o l . I.' u u no
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