Chapter LXXXVII: Porus Saved by His Elephant

King Porus, in a battle with Alexander the Great, being severely wounded, fell from the back of his elephant. The Macedonian soldiers, supposing him dead, pushed forward, in order to rob him of his rich clothing and accoutrements; but the faithful elephant, standing over the body of its master, boldly drove back every one who dared to come near, and while the enemy stood at bay, took the bleeding Porus up with his trunk, and placed him again on his back.

The troops of Porus came by this time to his relief, and the king was saved; but the elephant died of the wounds which it had so bravely received in the heroic defense of its master.

LXXXVIII

A HUMANE SOCIETY

A large colony of rooks had lived for many years in a grove on the banks of a river. One quiet evening the idle birds amused themselves with chasing one another through endless mazes, and in their flight they made the air sound with many discordant noises. In the midst of this play, it unfortunately happened that one of the rooks, by a sudden turn, struck his head against the wing of another. The wounded bird instantly fell into the river. A general cry of distress followed. The birds hovered with every expression of anxiety over their distressed companion.

Encouraged by their sympathy, and perhaps by the language of counsel known to themselves, he sprang into the air, and by one strong effort reached the point of a rock that projected into the river. The joy became loud and universal; but, alas! it was soon changed into notes of sorrow, for the poor, wounded bird, in trying to fly toward his nest, dropped again into the river, and was drowned.