Alva Review-Courier -

HUGO, Okla. (AP) — As the 1,500-pound animals rumbled past, circus employees — including the trainer — ran after them, even though it was pointless. The animals were too fast to catch on foot, and even if a couple speedsters did reach them, what were they supposed to do? The Asian elephants would toss them aside as if they were no more than puppies.

Lilly and Isa (pronounced ICE-uh), at 5 or 6 years old, were small children by elephant standards, and they had young legs and nervous demeanors. All it had taken for them to run in terror was the noisy toppling of a stack of steel poles during a t...