The Oregon daily journal., November 15, 1908, Page 27, Image 27

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The Little
The Elephant
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AMA ! mama l" cried a little boy.
cut she could not hear htm, nor could
he see. her; but what he did tee, and it
frightened him very much, was a bin
crocodile The little boy hardly had time
to be in real danger before he taw a large
j. t epnant come from the bushes. Coiling
the tail of the crocodile, the elephant
Bung him into the air.
I The little boyPnnce Nooro was his nameforgot
ing his bands to see the reptile go up, turn over and
ver, and come down splash f into the water.
It Ml on the bank of a beautiful river, and they stood
looking at each other, little Nooro and the noble ele
phant that had saved his life.
The elephant gently wound its trunk around the body
? "J? .'" poyi and, taking him up, went away through
the thicket Into the deep jungle.
Npo had cen tame elephants, and was at first not
Straidj but as he was carried along through the foreat
e became uneasy, .
I want to go to my mama 1" he cried. (
Of course, the elephant did not know what he meant.
.Besides, he had his own notions of what he ought to do
!with the boyj and o ho went on.
Over high hills and across deep valleys went the ele
phant with long, swinging steps until they were under
some tall trees bearing fruit Nooro knew the fruit
quite well, and was fond of it The elephant, too, liked
aweet fruit, and reaching high up with his trunk,
fcrought some of It down, which he ate with great rel
ish. He did not forget the little boy, and to hira he gave
- fruit as fast as he could eat. And now more than ever
tevas the elephant pleasednot so much because he was
eating what he himself liked, but because the child ate
W'o. Besides fruits, they also had nuts of several sorts-,
s When the sun went down and the darkness came on-.
Nooro once more began to think of his mother, and that
made him cry; but at length he fell asleep.
When he awoke in the morning the little boy again
thought of his mama and cried ; but as each day passed,
be cried less and less.
' The elephant had placed him In a large pelican's nest,
made of a great many sticks, and so high up in the
branches of a tall tree that he could just reach it with
his trunk and put Nooro into it. But when it rained
very hard the elephant would take Nooro from his nest
and place him under his body, closing his huge legs;
around him. and setting up great, broad palm-leaves on
each side or him, and it was a rare thing that a drop of
rain fell into the snug shelter where Nooro was cozily
nestling.
Sometimes these heavy showers lasted for hours.
While the rain came down in torrents he would peep
out to see the monkeys and the squirrels running for
shelter among the trees and branches.
With these creatures he soon was on the best of terms
The monkeys grew very fond of him, and when he waa
up in his nest they would come to him with choice fruit
end nuts, on purpose to see him eat. Besides, they
brought the little baby monkeys to play with him ; and
nothing afforded them greater sport than to see him try
to climb after the young monkeys as they bounded from
limb to limb; and, out of sheer joy, the older ones thenv
selves would scamper up and down among the branches-.
Nooro had by this time quite forgotten what fewr
words ha had learned when at home with his mother;
but he naturally fell into a kind of language of his own,
and he had names for the different foods. The fruit
he liked best of all he called "keekee." His good friend
the elephant, who took such good care of him, he called
"Popo. Ho would say to the elephant: "Popo, kee
Jceel" It was when Nooro was about eight years old that ho
caw, one day, while aloft in his tree, a lot of elephant!
not far off. v
"Popos! popos!" he cried out, in his queer Invented
language. ''More popos t I thought there was only one
PopoT
And while he was so much excited up in the tree,
Popo below was stamping the ground with his big feet, '
his trunk stretched in the direction of the elephants,
.and trumpeting.
The elephants came on slowly, nearer and nearer; and
Nooro, seeing they had no tusks, but only short tushes,
cried out in surprise.
When they got within a atone's throw they halted.
They seemed to be afraid to go any farther, But they
kept swinging their trunks round in a dreadful manner
as if they meant mischief.
I Popo uttered another loud cry, which was taken up by
the other elephants, and the forest rang with the strange
noise.
There they stood, with their trunks stretched out omi
nously toward Popo ; but he was now quiet, and seemed
not to heed them, but leisurely fanned himself with a
bunch of leaves.
AH at once a single elephant bore down upon Popo,
who dropped his fan and stood ready to meet him.
When he came near, Popo, suddenly lowering his head,
rushed fiercely toward the other, who, frightened by the
very sight of those dreadful tusks, turned and fled.
The other elephants, terrified, broke and fled also, and
soon were out of sight, while Popo playfully twirled off
the leaves within easy reach or brushed away the flies
that were troubling him. v.
Nooro and Popo lived in the deepest seclusion of the
forest, and after the elephants were gone all was peace
ful for a long time.
A whole moon passed away before Popo went after
keekees again. On bis way he seemed to exercise un
usual caution. He reached in safety the place where the
keekees were growing, and, boldly taking off the finest
bunch of all, hurried back. All went well this time
until, coming to a very narrow pass between high rocks,
Popo stopped and looked round, extending his trunk in
every direction and sniffing the air. At last, scenting
no danger, he went on. '-- ,
- But at the other end of that narrow pass were the
other elephants lying in wait for him. They knew he
would have to come that way, and stood ready to fall
upon him the moment he got there. He was already
almost there when he took alarm, but now the passage
was so narrow that he could scarcely turn. Boldly he
pushed forward,' when 6u$ from either side i snrang a
dozemflephants, seized him by the legsi and hlld -him .
fast, while twice as many more rushed upon hint from
the front, crowding upon hi so thick he could not
move. Savagely they attacked him from the back, and
i would, no doubt, have killed him, but suddenly they
jilt fled. They had placed sentinels to give warning of
any danger, and these had mounded the alarm. Away
they all sped, and were lost tat the Jungle.
1 Poor Popo alone remained, f There came tip to hint
Itwo men) but fiee from them he could not, he was
Boy And .
to weak; The jpeople of that country were kind to
elephantsand prued them highly. These two men took
pity on him, dug up certain roots, pressed out the Juice,
and with it washed his wounds and bound themup.
rhey tied a rope to one of his legs, that he might not
get away from themj but he was ready to follow, for
their kindness made him already love them; and this
elephant, by far .the largest and shrewdest that had
ever beca seen ia that part of the country, whom no
NOORO IS FED BY
traps could Catch", BO fences could hold, and no drums,
sticks, trumpets, or fires could frighten, was now led
captive to the town.
Tho town was the royal residence, and the sovereign
was a good, wise queen. She was called the Daughter
of the Sun and the Sublime Ruh?r of Elephants.
Popo was led before the queen. On seeing him her
large and beautiful eyas sparkled with delight. She rose
from the throne and, speaking not a word, stood won
dering. "Glorious elephant!" at length sho said; "thou art
indeed the King of Elephants 1"
Orders were immediately given that Popo .should at
once receive the best attention of the highly skilled
elephant-doctorj of the royal household, and by tho
care of those renowned physicians he soon recovered.
The royal stables, splendid as they were, were not
deemed worthy of so, grand an elephant Therefore a
magnificent structure, ornamented with gold and pre
cious gems, was built" for hira In tho choicest spot of
the royal gardens.
He was arrayed in robea the most costly, and was
admired wherever ho went
Popo, now "Boobooroo," might have felt some pride
in -such -fine style, but certain it is his mind went often
in searth of that secluded forest where he and Nooro
had lived so peacefully, and there can bo little doubt
that he would have liked that free life far better than
all the pomp of royalty. -
Yet he was not unmindful of kind treatment. His
keepers were very fond of him, and to them he yielded
grateful obedience. He Was all gentleness, and yef was
mere noi anlephant so knowing as he. At first he
had astonished all by his great ilze and handsome tusks,
so now he gained the love and admiration of , all by
his docility and wonderful powers. His sagacity, was
extraordinary, and in nothing was It more charmingly
shown than in tho respectful manner In which he always
saluted the queen. ; But what people liked in him
above all was his love of little children, always amusing
them, never growing, weary of them, ever caressing
them, r, And this gave the. queen, even more joy than
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any of the.feople. "'She bestowed upon him the title of
the "Children' Elephant." -
? - Popo, however, never forgot the little boy, and the
i pleasant place in that lovely forest where Nooro, on
the day that Popo had been waylaid by the wicked
elephants, anxiously awaited his coming. Nearly the
whole morning Nooro thought only of the delicious
fruit ; but when the day began to wane he thought onfa
ll of Popo. As the sun went down the full moon rosv
; and Nooro, high up in his tree, saw an elephant conv-
ing His heart beat faster,
" . -7,Popo! Popolv .he cried.
But there were no tusks. Then came another ele
phant, and all at once appeared a whole herd. They
, were the same that had troubled them before. There
were the same four young ones.
, 'Those bad popos again I" he thought.
They stood all night under the trees, but did not try to
'break them down, knowing them to ijbe altogether too
large for their strength. The next morning Nooro was
afraid to come down, and all that day he waited for
. i them to go away, hoping every moment to see Popo
coming. But the elephants knew that Popo had been
THE ELBPHAMT
caught and was in the hands ftf men J so, now they
no longer had anything to fear, they were come to cap
ture Nooro.
And there they stayed. For two or three days Nooro
was distressed for want of food and water, and, had
it not been for his friends the monkeys, would have
been forced to come down from his tree the very first ,
day; but they seemed to know just how he was placed,
and brought him not only food, but water also, in cup
shaped, shells. Besides, they detested those meddling
elephants as much as Nooro -feared them, and from
high up in the trees pelted them with sticks, of which
they could get plenty, by pulling the pelicans' nests to .
pieces.
But the elephants, although they would have liked
to punish those saucy creatures, were not to be driven
away by any such paltry warfare, and bided their time. .
They knew that Nooro would have to come down,
which, indeed, he did about midnight of the fourth
day, the moon being-' above an hour high. He let
himself down by long strips of , vines he had tied to
gether, and tried to run past thinking the elephants
might be asleep. . But straightway one of them seized
him with his trunk; at the same time there was a
twittering noise as of birds, made with their lips, and
of a sudden a dozen or more came running wp, and,
gathered together in a body, they made off, full speed.
' It was daylight before they halted in a'beautiful
grove of tall palms, which had grown up in the depth
of th wilderness, where no man for years upon years
had set his foot.
Here the elephants put Nooro down. He could not
run away, "for ihev were ready for him . on every side,
id-4aw--a-Ppa4laxwith1'1iini so prettily, they
thought they would have their sport, too- So one. of
them raised him on, his trunk. But Nooro was both
afraid and sullen, and would not stand on Che end of -i
it. Then another elephant; took and reached hint over
to a third; and so they patsed him sound. , Even the
four little young ones took part iSf) this play, and
enjoyed it more than all the-rest. ! Placing a jruard
.around him, they presently brought hixa sweet fruits,.,
; COPYRIGHT BY THt CCHTURY" COMPANY
THE WEDDING.
' By Katharine Pyle.
What 's all this etir !n among the toys?
The rustle and stir? The donkey creaks,
The paper rustles, the little ball rolls,
The round drum rumbles, the rabbit squeaks.
There 's not a toy but means to see,
In all the closet from wall to fall.
The wedding between the Jack-in-the-box
And the prettiest china doll of all.
She looked so timid, and he so proud,
And both were as happy as they could be;
And the Moon shone in through the- closet door
It was really a beautiful sight to see.
But when it was over, and all the toys
Had settled again upon the shelves,
Where Jack and the dolly could not. hear;. .
They talked about it among themselves.
which they could easily pluck with their trunk). He
ate with relish, and naturally began to be pleased with
such good elephants; and the more he ate the better
humor he was in. Vicn the little ones .came and
gracefully swung their trunks toward him, he pulled
at them playfully, and they, growing bolder, placed him
on their backs, and were delighted with his skill in
riding them.
One day while the herd was away, he saw an ele
phant afar off, and thought one of them was coming
. back.
"But ! he has tusks!" he shouted.
' The elephant came nearer, 1 -
"Here he comes with his big tusks I"
He clapped his hands for joy.
"It 's Popo! it 's Popo!"
Nooro clambered down the tree and ran toward
liim.
I'opo made a joyous bound, fondled him a moment
with his trunk, took him up, and fled at full speed.
d was scarcely day when they came to the edge
of the town, and Nooro, seeing houses, wondered what
they could be; but great waa his astonishment, a few
minutes later, on beholding two women, who were
coming to the wells for water. They had just come
from behind a hedge, and were so close that he could
well see their faces. They, surprised at seeing the
large elephant, whom everybody supposed to have fled,
never to come back, dropped their big pitchers, threw
up their arms, and shrieked :
"Iioobooroo! Boobooroo! The King of Elephants l"
Away they ran into the town, crying:
"The King of Elephants has come back I The King
has come back!"
Then the people ran out of their houses and flocked
to the highroad,, where Popo was coming at a good
yace. The throng soon grew so dense that he could
no longer go ahead, while around him they were shout
ing :
'"He has brought a boy I"
As they approached the palace cheers after cheers
went up. The queen came forth, wondering what it all
meant. As soon as she was seen, all shouted:
"Make way! Make way for the great, good queen 1
The royal guards made a wide opening through the
crowd, and Popo, with Nooro still clinging to him, ad
vanced through the passage and presented himself be
fore the queen; and she, surprised at seeing the noble
elephant, whom she had given up for lost exclaimed
in a loud voice: ...
"The Children's Elephant, the greatest of elephants,
lias come back!"
But when she saw the boy on his neck she was
more astonished than ever. '
"What! A boy? A strange-looktng boy! Yon
have brought a child wilh you!'
Popo, bending his fore knees, knelt down before the
qU"U?it who is this that you have brought with you?
she asked, arid stepped toward Nooro; but he, afraid,
chine still closer to old Popo.
"Why, my lad, you are not afraid, are you? I ell
me who you are, and from what country you come!
The queen's kind words were to Nooro's ears the
sweetest music he had ever heard, and, losing a little
of hrs fear, he now looked up, when, he saw her beau
tiful face lighted up with all the charm of noble good
ness. So now his eyes were greeted with an image
more beautiful than all the world beside.
And she, on her part, thought she had never seen
so beautiful., boy. Of fine proportions, with hair long
and flowing, eyes sparkling like morning dewdrops, m
action graceful and manly, Nooro stood before her in
all the beauty of hi9 youth.
She took him by the hand and asked him many ques
tions; but he' did not understand a word. Nor-could
any one understand him. The learned menmen who.
could speak many languages were called to make out
what language he spoke and what country he' came
from, but not one could tclt t
"Thtn," said the queen,' "he must have dropped from
the tides, and our big elephant caUKtit him as he felL
He shall be called the 'Son of the Clouds."
And as she said this Popo took Nooro in his trunk
and held him aloft, and Nooro, mounting, stood upon
the end of the trunk.
Then a shout went upfrom the people. The -queen,
like the rest astonished, feared he would fall, and cried
out to the elephant': "
rYou win km the beautiful boy!" - ...
Hardly had she said ni whtn Nooro sprung high
In the iir, and when he came down, Popo caught him .
upon his trunk and tusks. v. A ,.
Then went up from the people a greater shout than
before, and the queen said: . . a ;
"That is the wav he fell from the clouds, and that
is the ray. the elephant caught -Jura.''.; ,.- ;
The little boy doll who came from ?mt$
Sighed as he shook his flaxen head ;
" T would have been all right for a wooden doll, '
But she might have done much better," he said.
Said Mrs. Noah, "I really think 'w
'T was a very stupid and slow affair;1
I hope we shall find when we reach the ark
The animals all in order there'
Beit Jack-in-the-box and the little doll
Smiled at each other tenderly;
They did not hear, and they, did not care.
But both were as happy as they could be.
Popo, kneeling, then set Nooro down before the
queen ; and she, placing her royal hand upon his head,
said:
"Welcome, Son of the. Clouds! You have fallen
to us like a beautiful thought from heaven. The palace
shall be your home, we shall be your friends, and my
children shall be your playmates." 5 - '
He was dressed in royal garments, and the queen,
calling the princesses, her little daughters, said to
them : .
"This is the Son of the Clouds ! He has fallen from
freaven like a beautiful dream. He is a bright, good
boy. Shake hands, little children. There, now f be
good friends."
They shook hands and looked into each other's eyes.
Then the younger of the little girls stepped up and,
grasping Nooro by the arm, said:
"Oh, we 've been playing such a nice play! Come!"
And long before the sun went down they were play
ing hide-and-seek in the nalace corners. .
When children play they learn learn fast and welL
Scarce a year rolled round, and Nooro learned all that
his little playmates knew, and could speak almost aa
well as they.
And now that she could talk to him and he to her,
the queen loved him still the more, and more than ever
did he seem not only like a beautiful dream, but lika
a bright reality fallen from heaven.
One day she took both his hands in hers, saying ta
him:
"Once we had a little boya lovely child That
child, seven years ago, was lost to us. We called him
Nooro. He would be your age now, and we shall call
you Nooro in his stead Nooro, Son of fhe Clouds.
When he heard the name "Nooro" the sound waa
like the echo of a forgotten dream. His eyes wera
full of thought, and on his lips waa the play of inno
cence. He knelt before the queen and wept.
Then did she raise him, and, in all the joy of
mother's fondness, kissed him tenderly.
"0h,M she said, "maybe you are my Nooro!"
And he, forgetting that the was a queen, placed hi
little arms around her neck, and sobbed the only word!
of love he remembered:
"Mama!" . , f
From that time they loved each other aa motherland
aon, Sometimes she would say to him:
"I do not know that you are my son j neither can
you know that I am your mother; but we will believe,
Nooro, we will believe I"
And the love which was between them grewsret deeper
by the charm of mystery. . . ' . -
The wise men of the court taught htm good and useful
knowledge, and early childhood not having been forced
with too much learning, he grew up a healthy, strong,
and active man. Like the queen, he was loved by tha
whole people, and. the princesses, his younger sisters,
by their modest bearing and womanly goodness, won
the hearts of all.
Peace, good will, and happiness reigned in the land
for many years. ,
Ont day the queen, sow old, called Nooroand said
to him:
"My son, death will come ere long to takeWne away? i
from yon all. The crown shall be yours. Theeoploi
wish it." r -
But Nooro answered: .
we do nor mow mat i am your son. i uo nit
desire to ' be king. The wise and beautiful princess,
your eldest daughter, ought to be queen. The people
honor and love her. I like the palace because, in it
live my dearest friends; but I love the sweet wild
woods. There, in that beautiful forest where tha
faithful Popo cared for me so long; and well, I long
to end my days." " '. ' -.
Then the queen said: , '
"I wished you to be kin ; but I know that you love
the freshness and beauty of nature better than all
things on earth, and that you do so !ove them becaue
there dwells in you a noble and exalted soul. It shall
be, then, as you wish .'" ,
The good queen died- The people wanted Noor
for their king; -but when they saw that he would in
no wise wear the crown, they said: -
"The princeAs, the eldest daughter, will bw to u' a
good ruler, and give us teace and happiness."
Nooro. with his good friend Popo, went to th.-it t' I
forest where nature was yet as charming t vth-n I
was a child, and btiiiding with .his own hand a r ' - '
i shelter from sun and rain, he dwelt fr tm.iy f .
years in unison with nature's truth and c!orv.
Popo lived there with him, and w!-,en No.m, f : t
hundred years, sank sweetly ini t' - r e f f
the faithful elephant stood bv !,U -, '..
And daily at sunrise,. Popo, Vrir- - ...rtt
that tNooro had loved then, wO .ll 1 t'
srrave. . 1
.7 '