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Ch. 4: Elephants Historical

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ELEPHANTS, HISTORICAL 155
had they been straight, would have measured fully seven cubits in length.*
The first elephant that trod American soil since the far-off days of mastodon and mammoth was brought to the United States in 1815 and bought by Hackaliah Bailey of Somers, New York. The rather prosaic name of "Bet" was bestowed upon this animal, which on its arrival in New York Harbour on board a sailing vessel was trans­shipped to a river craft and finally landed on the shore of the Hudson at Sing Sing, the present Ossining. To avoid the risk of causing runaways through the instinctive terror felt by horses at the first sight of this ponderous and formi­dable brute, the journey by land from the shore to Somers was made at night, and the elephant arrived safely at its destination and future home. There, and in the surround­ing towns and villages, it was long exhibited to the delec­tation of the more or less unsophisticated natives of that early time, and became the central attraction of what may be regarded as the pioneer American circus, organized and managed by Mr. Bailey, who doubtless realized many times told over the $1,000 he had expended for his rare beast.
So closely did he feel that his fortunes were bound up in "Bet" that when, in 1827, he built a hotel in the town of Somers, with the proceeds of his show and circus, he called it the "Elephant Hotel" and set up near it a stone pedestal 15 ft. high on which was placed an immense, carefully carved wooden image of his elephant. This interesting memorial is still to be seen to-day.
In this hostelry the cattle dealers and drovers of the day were wont to assemble, and thousands of cattle were sold here annually. Later on Bailey went into the banking
•Cardani, "De Subtilitate," Basileae, 1554, p. 307, lib. X. On the basis of the Roman cubit (17.4 in.) this would be 8 ft. 4.4 in., or 10 ft. 1.8 in. "along'the curve."
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