2 r Humans v.Elephants:The Three Thousand Years War Four thousand years ago there were elephants in the area that was later to become Beijing (in the Northeast),and in most of the rest of what was later to be China.Today,the only wild elephants in the People's Republic are those in a few protected enclaves in the Southwest,up against the border with Burma. The stages of this long retreat south and west are shown in Map 2,The Retreat of the Elephants,which is based on the research of the late Wen Huanran.' That elephants were abundant in the Northeast,Northwest,and West during the archaic age is clear from the elephant bones found in Shang and Shu archae- ological sites,?from the cast bronze elephants of this time,and from records on oracle bones'that mention elephants being sacrificed to the ancestors.Not long after the start of the first millennium BCE,however,they were rarely overwin- tering north of the Huai River on the Northeast/East boundary.By the begin- ning of the second millennium cE they were confined to the South,and during the second half of this last millennium increasingly to the Southwest. What were the causes of this disaster(seen from the elephants'point of view)? In part it was likely to have been the cooling of the climate,as referring back to the last column in Table1 in the previous chapter will suggest.Elephants do not resist cold well.But since the elephant population did not recover to more than a small degree in somewhat warmer periods(such as 700 BCE to 200 BCE,when it seems to have moved back north from the Yangzi valley to the line of the Huai River),and mostly not at all,some other force was at work.The most obvious explanation is that it was the result of a protracted war with human beings which the elephants lost.The pattern of their withdrawal in time and in space was,so to speak,the reverse image of the expansion and intensification of Chinese settlement.Chinese farmers and elephants do not mix
Four thousand years ago there were elephants in the area that was later to become Beijing (in the Northeast), and in most of the rest of what was later to be China. Today, the only wild elephants in the People’s Republic are those in a few protected enclaves in the Southwest, up against the border with Burma. The stages of this long retreat south and west are shown in Map 2, ‘The Retreat of the Elephants’, which is based on the research of the late Wen Huanran.1 That elephants were abundant in the Northeast, Northwest, and West during the archaic age is clear from the elephant bones found in Shang and Shu archaeological sites,2 from the cast bronze elephants of this time, and from records on oracle bones3 that mention elephants being sacrificed to the ancestors. Not long after the start of the first millennium bce, however, they were rarely overwintering north of the Huai River on the Northeast/East boundary. By the beginning of the second millennium ce they were confined to the South, and during the second half of this last millennium increasingly to the Southwest. What were the causes of this disaster (seen from the elephants’ point of view)? In part it was likely to have been the cooling of the climate, as referring back to the last column in Table 1 in the previous chapter will suggest. Elephants do not resist cold well. But since the elephant population did not recover to more than a small degree in somewhat warmer periods (such as 700 bce to 200 bce, when it seems to have moved back north from the Yangzi valley to the line of the Huai River), and mostly not at all, some other force was at work. The most obvious explanation is that it was the result of a protracted war with human beings which the elephants lost. The pattern of their withdrawal in time and in space was, so to speak, the reverse image of the expansion and intensification of Chinese settlement. Chinese farmers and elephants do not mix. 2 Humans v. Elephants: The Three Thousand Years War
-40N 5000 BCE 35 900 BCE 580( -25 1450CE -20 OD kilometers 100PE 105 110 115 120 5000 BCE-900 BCE 1050CE-1450CE ☑ 900 BCE-580 CE (variable zone) 1450CE-1830CE 580CE-1050CE Present day --Present international frontier Note:Apart from the variable zone,earlier dates include later dates.Modern coastlines. Map 2 The Retreat of the Elephants(after Wen Huanran)
Map 2 The Retreat of the Elephants (after Wen Huanran)
Humans v.Elephants:The Three Thousand Years War Tr It is necessary to say 'Chinese'here as some non-Han cultures in the Far South seem to have had a less confrontational relationship.One writer in Tang times observed of the Manshi 'barbarians,who are of Tai stock,that"peacocks nest in the trees by people's houses,and the elephants are the size of water buffalo,the local custom being to rear them to plow the fields,and,even now, to burn their dung as fuel." The war against wild animals generally was a defining characteristic of the early Zhou-dynasty culture from which classical China later emerged.This can be seen from the Mencius,the book that describes the ideas of Mencius,the second important thinker in the Confucian tradition.The philosopher lived in the fourth century BCE,and was therefore speaking about events more than three-quarters of a millennium before his time.What he has to say about the Duke of Zhou is nonetheless revealing:' After the sage-rulers Yao and Shun had passed away,the way of the sages fell into decay.Oppressive monarchs...abandoned the farmland to make it into gardens and hunting enclosures,and as a result the people could not get clothes or food....As the gardens and hunting enclosures,ponds,lakes, thickets,and swamps became numerous,the birds and the beasts moved in. By the reign of Zhou [the 'evil'last sovereign of the Shang dynasty],the world was once again in great disorder.The Duke of Zhou assisted King Wu of the Zhou dynasty to destroy Zhou....He drove the tigers,leopards, rhinoceroses,and elephants far away,and the world was greatly delighted. Presumably this applied to the middle and lower valley of the Yellow River toward the end of the second millennium BCE.We do not have to believe the details,but can take it as expressing a continuing social memory of an attitude of mind reflecting the struggle to consolidate a farming culture. The 'war'was fought on three fronts.The first front was the destruction of the elephants'forest habitat by clearing land for farming.One reason we hear of their intrusions,from time to time even into walled cities,is probably that they were under pressure from the shrinking of the resources available to them.The second front was the farmers'defense of their crops against elephant trampling and plundering,based on their belief that the security of the fields demanded the extermination or capture of the thieves.The third front was the hunting of elephants for their ivory and their trunks,which were a gourmet's delicacy,or their trapping to be trained for war,transport,or ceremonial.These three fronts can be looked at separately,but in all cases habitat destruction was the key. Chinese elephants need a warm and moist environment,without steep slopes,in which they can avoid direct sunlight and move around easily.The
It is necessary to say ‘Chinese’ here as some non-Han cultures in the Far South seem to have had a less confrontational relationship. One writer in Tang times observed of the Manshi ‘barbarians’, who are of Tai stock, that “peacocks nest in the trees by people’s houses, and the elephants are the size of water buffalo, the local custom being to rear them to plow the fields, and, even now, to burn their dung as fuel.”4 The war against wild animals generally was a defining characteristic of the early Zhou-dynasty culture from which classical China later emerged. This can be seen from the Mencius, the book that describes the ideas of Mencius, the second important thinker in the Confucian tradition. The philosopher lived in the fourth century bce, and was therefore speaking about events more than three-quarters of a millennium before his time. What he has to say about the Duke of Zhou is nonetheless revealing:5 After the sage–rulers Yao and Shun had passed away, the way of the sages fell into decay. Oppressive monarchs . . . abandoned the farmland to make it into gardens and hunting enclosures, and as a result the people could not get clothes or food . . . . As the gardens and hunting enclosures, ponds, lakes, thickets, and swamps became numerous, the birds and the beasts moved in. By the reign of Zhòu [the ‘evil’ last sovereign of the Shang dynasty], the world was once again in great disorder. The Duke of Zhou assisted King Wu of the Zhou dynasty to destroy Zhòu . . . . He drove the tigers, leopards, rhinoceroses, and elephants far away, and the world was greatly delighted. Presumably this applied to the middle and lower valley of the Yellow River toward the end of the second millennium BCE. We do not have to believe the details, but can take it as expressing a continuing social memory of an attitude of mind reflecting the struggle to consolidate a farming culture. The ‘war’ was fought on three fronts. The first front was the destruction of the elephants’ forest habitat by clearing land for farming. One reason we hear of their intrusions, from time to time even into walled cities, is probably that they were under pressure from the shrinking of the resources available to them. The second front was the farmers’ defense of their crops against elephant trampling and plundering, based on their belief that the security of the fields demanded the extermination or capture of the thieves. The third front was the hunting of elephants for their ivory and their trunks, which were a gourmet’s delicacy, or their trapping to be trained for war, transport, or ceremonial. These three fronts can be looked at separately, but in all cases habitat destruction was the key. Chinese elephants need a warm and moist environment, without steep slopes, in which they can avoid direct sunlight and move around easily. The Humans v. Elephants: The Three Thousand Years War 11
12 Patterns ideal is open forest near water or wetlands.They may weigh up to five tons, and consume a large quantity of food every day,typically leaves,wild bananas, and tender bamboo tips.Water is needed not just for drinking but also for washing in and cooling down.The Book of the Prince of Huainan,a com- pendium on natural history put together around 120 BcE,and infused with a sense of the power of natural environments to engender specific living things and shape them in particular ways,described the southern regions at this time as "places where the bright-positive aethers"accumulate,being warm and moist...with land well suited to rice,and having numerous rhinoceroses and elephants."7 Elephants reproduce slowly,the gestation of the usual single calf taking about 1.8 years.It is therefore difficult for them to make good in a short time losses from slaughter inflicted by humans.Nor,in spite of their exceptional intelligence and memory,do they adapt easily to altered environments.But they are mobile.It seems unlikely that any other quadruped mammal of the present day can easily ford or swim rivers the size of the middle reaches of the Yangzi.Mobility has been a partial substitute for adaptability. Elephants live in small groups and,in this state,are not normally dangerous to humans who do not provoke them.The rogue male who has left his group, or been pushed out of it,is however a serious threat.As one writer observed in the eleventh century:"There were formerly numerous elephants in the terri- tory of Zhangzhou [in the Southeast],which is next door to Chaoyang [in the Far South].They commonly formed herds of somewhat more than ten,but caused no harm.Only if a solitary elephant met someone would he pursue him,and trample on him till his bones and flesh were pulverized,before making off.”s The crux was that elephants could not survive without tree cover,and its destruction implied their departure.This can be illustrated from two accounts of the so-called 'elephants'hideouts'in Wuping,on the border of the South- east with the Far South.The first is from a Song-dynasty writer."Elephants' hideouts [he says]were found between Chaozhou [in the Far South]and Meizhou [on the Far South border with the Southeast]in an area that is at present under the jurisdiction of Wuping county.In times past,when it had not yet been opened up for farming,herds of elephants would stop in them ...These days,the land is fertile and harvests abundant."The second is from a late fourteenth-century local gazetteer for Linding,on the border of the Southeast with the Far South: The forest provided a screen overhead and there is an old tradition that elephants would emerge from the hideouts,hence their name.Later on
ideal is open forest near water or wetlands. They may weigh up to five tons, and consume a large quantity of food every day, typically leaves, wild bananas, and tender bamboo tips. Water is needed not just for drinking but also for washing in and cooling down. The Book of the Prince of Huainan, a compendium on natural history put together around 120 bce, and infused with a sense of the power of natural environments to engender specific living things and shape them in particular ways, described the southern regions at this time as “places where the bright–positive aethers6 accumulate, being warm and moist . . . with land well suited to rice, and having numerous rhinoceroses and elephants.”7 Elephants reproduce slowly, the gestation of the usual single calf taking about 1.8 years. It is therefore difficult for them to make good in a short time losses from slaughter inflicted by humans. Nor, in spite of their exceptional intelligence and memory, do they adapt easily to altered environments. But they are mobile. It seems unlikely that any other quadruped mammal of the present day can easily ford or swim rivers the size of the middle reaches of the Yangzi. Mobility has been a partial substitute for adaptability. Elephants live in small groups and, in this state, are not normally dangerous to humans who do not provoke them. The rogue male who has left his group, or been pushed out of it, is however a serious threat. As one writer observed in the eleventh century: “There were formerly numerous elephants in the territory of Zhangzhou [in the Southeast], which is next door to Chaoyang [in the Far South]. They commonly formed herds of somewhat more than ten, but caused no harm. Only if a solitary elephant met someone would he pursue him, and trample on him till his bones and flesh were pulverized, before making off.”8 The crux was that elephants could not survive without tree cover, and its destruction implied their departure. This can be illustrated from two accounts of the so-called ‘elephants’ hideouts’ in Wuping, on the border of the Southeast with the Far South. The first is from a Song-dynasty writer. “Elephants’ hideouts [he says] were found between Chaozhou [in the Far South] and Meizhou [on the Far South border with the Southeast] in an area that is at present under the jurisdiction of Wuping county. In times past, when it had not yet been opened up for farming, herds of elephants would stop in them ....These days, the land is fertile and harvests abundant.”9 The second is from a late fourteenth-century local gazetteer for Linding, on the border of the Southeast with the Far South: The forest provided a screen overhead and there is an old tradition that elephants would emerge from the hideouts, hence their name. Later on, 12 Patterns
Humans v.Elephants:The Three Thousand Years War Thi 13 people gradually felled the trees and removed the couch grass.If they found a place that wrapped around them like a spiral coil [a sort of small sheltered valley],they would make it into a settlement.Ninety-nine times out of a hundred these places were once elephants'hideouts.0 Farmers and elephants were in direct competition for habitat. Villagers also killed elephants by forcing them to be exposed to direct sun- light.A Ming-dynasty author describes this for the county of Hepu,in the Southwest,on the coast: In 1547 a mob of elephants trampled down the common people's harvests at Mount Dalian.When chased,they refused to move off.The prefect... induced the most prominent people in the rural district to lead the inhabi- tants in catching them.Before they began,they fashioned connected tree trunks into portable barricades.Each of these was ten feet in length and needed several men to lift.They then waited until the herd of elephants was hidden behind a small hill,and at once surrounded them on all sides with the barricades,this being done in the twinkling of an eye.Outside the barri- cades they made a deep ditch,and encircled it with people holding bows, arrows,and long spears.The order was given not to let the elephants smash through the barricades and get away.People were also told to wait for a moment when they could cut down the trees that grew within the barri- cades,so the herd could be attacked by the heat of the midday sun.Elephants are afraid of heat;and in three or four days all of them were dead." The devastating effects of an increasingly treeless environment on elephants could not be brought home more brutally. Crops were the second point of conflict.According to the Song History, elephants appeared in 962 cE in Huangpo county,which is in the Center,north of the Yangzi.Here they "hid in the woods and ate the common people's grain sprouts and harvests.They did the same in some other areas including Tangzhou (in the Northeast),which was 140 miles away.This suggests the sort of distances they moved.The same source says of Chaozhou in 1171 that "several hundred wild elephants devoured the harvest.The farmers put pit traps in their fields.Since the elephants were unable to eat,they led their herd to encircle carts and horses traveling on the roads.Grain was collected to feed them,after which they went away." In 991 an auxiliary academician in the Bureau of Military Affairs sent up a memorial in which he observed that in Leizhou (in the Far South),and other areas nearby that were on or near the western end of the south coast,"there are elephants in herds"in "the mountains and forests."The common people were
people gradually felled the trees and removed the couch grass. If they found a place that wrapped around them like a spiral coil [a sort of small sheltered valley], they would make it into a settlement. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred these places were once elephants’ hideouts.10 Farmers and elephants were in direct competition for habitat. Villagers also killed elephants by forcing them to be exposed to direct sunlight. A Ming-dynasty author describes this for the county of Hepu, in the Southwest, on the coast: In 1547 a mob of elephants trampled down the common people’s harvests at Mount Dalian. When chased, they refused to move off. The prefect . . . induced the most prominent people in the rural district to lead the inhabitants in catching them. Before they began, they fashioned connected tree trunks into portable barricades. Each of these was ten feet in length and needed several men to lift. They then waited until the herd of elephants was hidden behind a small hill, and at once surrounded them on all sides with the barricades, this being done in the twinkling of an eye. Outside the barricades they made a deep ditch, and encircled it with people holding bows, arrows, and long spears. The order was given not to let the elephants smash through the barricades and get away. People were also told to wait for a moment when they could cut down the trees that grew within the barricades, so the herd could be attacked by the heat of the midday sun. Elephants are afraid of heat; and in three or four days all of them were dead.11 The devastating effects of an increasingly treeless environment on elephants could not be brought home more brutally. Crops were the second point of conflict. According to the Song History, elephants appeared in 962 ce in Huangpo county, which is in the Center, north of the Yangzi. Here they “hid in the woods and ate the common people’s grain sprouts and harvests.”12 They did the same in some other areas including Tangzhou (in the Northeast), which was 140 miles away. This suggests the sort of distances they moved. The same source says of Chaozhou in 1171 that “several hundred wild elephants devoured the harvest. The farmers put pit traps in their fields. Since the elephants were unable to eat, they led their herd to encircle carts and horses traveling on the roads. Grain was collected to feed them, after which they went away.”13 In 991 an auxiliary academician in the Bureau of Military Affairs sent up a memorial in which he observed that in Leizhou (in the Far South), and other areas nearby that were on or near the western end of the south coast, “there are elephants in herds” in “the mountains and forests.” The common people were Humans v. Elephants: The Three Thousand Years War 13