 Once a farmer loaded his wagon with produce and headed to market. On his way to town, he encountered a circus parade, led by an elephant. The farmer was thrilled. His horses, however, were terrified. They bolted, overturning his wagon and ruining the contents. "I don't give a hang," the farmer said, "for I have seen the elephant." The expression "seeing the elephant" became a catch-phrase for those on the adventure of a lifetime, seeking gold in California. Those who turned back claimed to have "seen the elephant's tail," or "seen the elephant's track," and figured that was sufficient. As historian Malcolm Rohrbough put it, the term "characterized the Gold Rush as simultaneously exciting, elusive and potentially dangerous." "I have come back poor," said more than one "Argonaut of '49" upon returning home, "but I have seen the elephant." |