" (Taylor's 'Eldorado.')
Asses.--Notwithstanding his inveterate obstinacy, the ass is an excellent
and sober little beast, far too much despised by us. He is not only the
most enduring, but also one of the quickest walkers among cattle, being
usually promoted to the leadership of a caravan. He is nearly equal to
the camel in enduring thirst, and thrives on the poorest pasture, suffers
from few diseases, and is unscathed by African distemper. The long
desert-roads and pilgrim-tracts of North Africa are largely travelled
over by means of asses.
Asses taught not to kick.--Mungo Park says that the negroes, where he
travelled, taught their asses as follows:--They cut a forked stick, and
put the forked part into the ass's mouth, like the bit of a bridle; they
then tied the two smaller parts together above his head, leaving the
lower part of sufficient length to strike against the ground if the ass
should attempt to put his head down. It always proved effectual.
Not to bray.--Messrs. Huc and Gabet, who were distracted by the continual
braying of one of their asses throughout the night, appealed to their
muleteer: he put a speedy close to the nuisance by what appears to be a
customary contrivance in China, viz., by lashing a heavy stone to the
beast's tail. It appears that when an ass wants to bray he elevates his
tail, and, if his tail be weighted down, he has not the heart to bray.
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