It is customary to hunt armadillos with dogs that are trained for the purpose. They reside in burrows which they dig in the ground, into these they endeavour to retreat when pursued: or, if at too great a distance, they attempt to dig new ones before they are overtaken. When in their holes, they are either smoked out, or are expelled by pouring in water. The moment they are seized they roll themselves together, and will not again extend unless placed near a hot fire. These animals seldom appear abroad except during the night; and they are often caught in snares that are laid for them at the mouths of their dens.
20. The RHINOCEROS.—There are two species of rhinoceros, one of which has one, and the other two horns, situated on the nose, and three hoofs on each foot.
These are animals of large size and bulky form, and live in swamps, morasses, and forests, in wet situations, within the torrid regions. The single-horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis, Fig. 1.) which is generally five or six feet in height, is found in Africa, in the central and southern parts of Asia, and in the islands of Sumatra and Ceylon. Its skin is blackish, naked, extremely thick, covered with a kind of warts, and disposed into large folds on different parts of the body. The two-horned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros bicornis) is a native of Africa, and has a thick and dark-coloured skin, but not arranged in folds like that of the preceding species.
The skin of the rhinoceros is an article in great demand in several countries of Asia and Africa. It is manufactured into the best and hardest leather that can be imagined; and targets or shields are made of it, that are proof against even the stroke of a scimitar. In this state the colour of the skin is variegated; and when polished it is nearly similar in appearance to tortoise-shell. The inhabitants of Surat make very elegant targets of these hides, which they stud with silver-headed nails. The Hottentots make chanboks or whips of them.
In Sumatra, Ceylon, and some parts of India, the flesh of the rhinoceros is an useful food. The horns, which are from twelve to fifteen inches in length, and three to six inches in diameter, are much esteemed amongst the Mahometans, not on account of any real utility, but from their being considered an antidote against poison. Good-sized horns, if purchased at three or four pounds sterling each, may be sold in the East Indies, with considerable profit, to the Arabian merchants. They are made into drinking cups; and it is believed that if any thing poisonous be put into them, a fermentation will ensue, by which the poison may be discovered. This, however, is without foundation, as very satisfactory experiments have proved. By the Arabians the horns of the rhinoceros are frequently made into the hilts of swords; and they are sold at an enormous price for that purpose. They are also manufactured into snuff-boxes, which are considered preferable to such as are made of tortoise shell; and we are informed by Martial, that the Roman ladies of fashion used them in the baths, to hold their essence bottles and oils.
The savage tribes of southern Africa, and even the inhabitants of the Cape of Good Hope, set a high value on the dried blood of the rhinoceros, to which they ascribe great medicinal virtues. The hoofs, and even the teeth, are also used medicinally.
Respecting the rhinoceros it may not be improper to remark, that, although naturally of a quiet and inoffensive disposition, his strength is such, that few animals are able to contend with him; and that the thickness of his hide is so great, as in several parts to be impenetrable even by a musket ball. These animals feed entirely on vegetable food, but particularly on the leaves and tender branches of shrubs. Their horns are not fixed into the bone of the head, like those of other quadrupeds, but only into the skin. They appear loose whilst the animals are in a quiescent state; but when the animals are irritated, they become fixed and immoveable.
21. The ELEPHANT (Elephas, Fig. 20), the only known animal of the tribe to which it belongs, is an inhabitant of the warmer regions of Asia and Africa, and is distinguished by having two long tusks projecting from the upper jaw, and the snout lengthened into a long and flexible trunk.
The general height of the elephant is nine or ten feet. Its skin is of dingy brown colour, and nearly destitute of hair. The tusks are much longer in the male than the female. Each of the feet has five rounded hoofs: and the tail, which is short, is terminated by a few scattered, and very thick black hairs.
Throughout the whole of the East Indies, as well as in several other parts of Asia, the elephant is an animal of indispensable utility. When tamed and reduced to a state of submission, he becomes so tractable as to obey all the orders of his keeper. Elephants are formed in a particular manner for the service of man in hot climates. They are employed both as beasts of draft and burthen; and one elephant is supposed equal to as much work as six horses. They are conducted by a man, who sits on their neck, and who employs as a weapon an iron rod, hooked at the end, with which he pricks the animal to urge him forward, or turn him in any direction that may be required. Almost all the articles that are transported from place to place in India are conveyed by elephants. They bend their knees to accommodate those who mount them: and, with their trunks, they even assist the persons by whom they are loaded. Before the invention of gunpowder, elephants were much employed by the Indians in their wars. They are now chiefly used for the purposes of labour and parade. They require much attention, and are generally fed with rice, either raw or boiled, and mixed with water, of which each elephant will devour daily near a hundred pounds' weight, besides a certain quantity of fresh herbage which is procured for him. They are led to the water thrice a day, both to drink and bathe; and their daily consumption of water for drink has been estimated at forty five gallons each.