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Page 9 text:
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Once upon a ti Jumbo, masWt of Tufts and symbol of our athletic prowess, achieved during anl after his brief life greater fame than any other animal in hi )ry. lot only has his name won a place in the hearts of all of Tufts, y adso a place in the English language, a name denoting the greatest oTlargest of its kind. No birth records are available but Jumbo was probably born about 1857 in Abyssinia. Bold, even in youth he was captured by a band of natives in 1861. Sold by them to an European animal dealer, he set forth on adventures greater than any his own African jungle could offer. His first stop was Paris, spending four years at thejardin des Plantes acquiring the continental manner. In 1865 he moved to London and took up residence in the gardens of the Royal Zoological Society, otherwise known as the London Zoo. There he lived for seventeen years, during which period he grew to the mammoth propor¬ tions for which he was ever after to be famous, twelve feet high and fourteen feet long, with a modest waistline of eighteen feet. The scales balanced at seven tons. Not only because of his great size but also because of his friendliness he became a great public favorite and the pride of all England. Only occasionally did he indulge in childish tantrums and throw his considerable weight around. On one such ocacsion he broke off his curved tusks and for a time he was tuskless. Soon new ones began to grow, but heading slightly off course, they emerged through his cheeks and he was ever after to have a facial appearance unique among elephants. In 1882, P. T. Barnum, Yankee circus man and trustee of Tufts College purchased Jumbo for $10,000 for Barnum and Bailey ' s Greatest Show on Earth. When the news broke, all England expressed its indignation. Injunction proceedings challenged the validity of the transaction, and even Queen Victoria interceded, saying the British Exchequer would stand financially responsible for any damages in breaking the agreement. The controversy attained such international proportions, that Punch Mockingly suggested that Jumbo be substi¬ tuted for the lion on the British coat-of-arms. The court decided in Mr. Barnum ' s favor and in 1882, J umbo set sail for new adventures in the New World. Making his debut in Madison Square Garden, New York, in April in that year. He toured all America, and he became the greatest attraction in the country. Books and songs were written about him. As his fame grew, so did legends of his colossal strength, his rare sagacity and his inherent gentleness. His massive figure was adopted by advertisers to suggest the greatness and strength of their products. Special ' Jumbo Excur¬ sion Trains” were run to accomodate the thousands eager to view this greatest of living wonders. At the height of his career, tragedy struck suddenly and swiftly — in the form of a Canadian freight locomotive. On September 15, 1885, in St. Thomas, Ontario, the elephants were following a shortcut along the main railroad track after the evening performance. According to witnesses, all the elephants exept Jumbo and the little clown elephant, Tom Thumb, had safely reached their cars. As these two were being led along the track, flanked on one side by circus cars and on the other oy a wire fence and a steep embankment an unscheduled freight train came suddenly from the east. Jumbo’s keeper, Matthew Scott, attempted to drive them to an opening between two cars, whence they could escape from the steel monster that bore down on them. They had raced some thirty yards when the locomotive struck the smaller elephant and knocked him down the embankment. In the darkness and his excite¬ ment, Jumbo ran past that only avenue of escape. He stopped in confusion. It was then that the heavy train struck him. His head was driven between two cars on the side track and such was the force of the collision that the locomotive and two cars were derailed. The gTeat Jumbo had received a mortal blow. He reached out his long trunk and drew close to his blood-stained head the only keeper he had ever known, who wept unashamedly in his grief. A few minutes later the mammoth heart was stilled forever. Dramatic as the true story of the tragedy was, it received consid¬ erable embellishment at the hands of the circus press agent by the time it appeared in the morning newspapers. According to the account, Jumbo sacrificed his own life to save that of the little clown elephant. To this day the legend has persisted that as the onrushing locomotive bore down upon them Jumbo seized the little elephant in his mighty trunk and hurled him twenty yards to safety. Then, seeing that no escape remained to him, Jumbo trumpeted a mighty challenge, lowered his head and charged the oncoming locomotive. Without delay, work was commenced to preserve Jumbo’s great form for posterity. With the aid of the butchers of the region, his hide was taken off in three pieces and his bones were removed. The
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Page 10 text:
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JUMBO oosa BACK TO EUROPE. LEADS far the LARGEST HERD of ELEPHANTS NARK Uti%P AT C0tHEY iaiAN.D r»an % THE UNIVERSRL SYNONTM FOR $LL fcJ5Pi p , stupendous things. «»T Steadily iMMfai fine IN TREfcaEaDOUS HEIGHT and WEIGHT • GIVE THE urr ttSHES » UST BIDE OH THEIR GIANT. DOCILE FRIEND. — XrmskixuAK u w .-nrjtfxaaecBCOBWTa w ' Trrw i. nal
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