myself in these accomplishments to the utmost of my power, I awaited in
patience the arrival of the elephants.

Looking round, I saw Jung himself, seated in the place of the mahout,
guiding the elephant which he bestrode very cleverly. When silence was
required he made a peculiar clucking noise with his tongue; whereupon
these docile creatures immediately became still and motionless: one would
drop the tuft of grass which he was tearing up, another would stop
instantly from shaking the dust out of the roots which he was preparing
to eat, others left off chewing their food. When a few seconds of the
most perfect calm had elapsed, the rooting up and dusting out went on
more briskly than ever, and the mouthful was doubly sweet to those who
were now allowed to finish the noisy process of mastication.

At last our patience was rewarded, and Jung gave the signal for us to
advance.

On each elephant there were now two riders, the mahout and a man behind,
who, armed with a piece of hard wood into which two or three spikes were
inserted, hammered the animal about the root of the tail as with a
mallet. He was furnished with a looped rope to hold on by, and a sack
stuffed with straw to sit upon, and was expected to belabour the elephant
with one hand while he kept himself on its back with the other.

This was the position I filled on this trying occasion; but my elephant
fared well as regarded the instrument of torture, for I was much too
fully occupied in taking care of myself to think of using it. Away we
went at full speed, jostling one another up banks and through streams,
and I frequently was all but jolted off the diminutive sack which ought
to have formed my seat, but did not, for I found it impossible to sit.