have the courage and taste for the work. Seventy-five thousand elephants
are slain yearly to supply the world’s knife-handles, billiard balls,
and piano keys. There are a number of persons engaged in the killing of
elephants for the sake of the sport, but most hunters do so for the
profit. Ivory is worth about $1 a pound, and the tusks of a male
elephant weigh about fifty pounds. The average of one elephant a day is
considered a good day’s work, although five or six have been taken under
the most favorable circumstances. The safest plan is by means of a
pitfall, as then the enraged beast is unable to attack his aggressor.
The elephant hunting business is worth about $5,000,000 a year.