Thursday, October 20, 2005

Matthew Scott #1


I'm sure these pictures of Jumbo in the London Zoo come as no surprise but I thought you might find a few comments on his long time keeper Matthew Scott interesting.

Posted by Buckles at 10/20/2005 07:30:00 AM

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Other than his association with Jumbo, was Scott noted for his success as a trainer? I imagine at Regents Park Jumbo wasn't a performer, per se. Do you know if he was trained at all before he came to the UK and was placed in Scott's charge? Did he receive additional training when he went out on the Barnum show?

20 October, 2005 15:11
Buckles said...

I think Scott's experience with elephants was confined to the zoo and since Jumbo arrived there when he was quite small I'm sure after so many years they became very comfortable with each other.
The Barnum elephant men were surely aware that this was a unique situation and wouldn't want to get involved.
I have found that working with African elephants is usually a compromise, you never quite get what you want and they volunteer a little more than they want to so you settle somewhere in between.
You know, Bailey withdrew from the show after the 1885 season as well as Arstingstall, I have often wondered how big a part Jumbo's death played in all this.

20 October, 2005 15:52
Anonymous said...

I always wondered if George Arstingstall was being held accountable by the main guy for Jumbo's accident in September 1885?

20 October, 2005 17:04
Anonymous said...

I'd never thought about the timing of Bailey leaving the show, selling his interest to Cooper and Cole until he formed his later sole partnership with Barnum. I wonder if the McCaddon collection, Bailey's papers refer to any role Jumbo's death played in all that

20 October, 2005 18:10
Buckles said...

I'm sure that Arstingstall was dismised over the Jumbo affair but I have read that Bailey was a very nervous person and on this occasion suffered a complete breakdown.

20 October, 2005 19:25
Anonymous said...

what are your thoughts about
the newpaper reports a few years later,that said that Jumbo was set up to be killed,possibly because he
was going down hill in the few months previously.

27 October, 2005 17:07

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