He was no elephant – John Sedgwick

In 1864, during the American Civil War, General John Sedgwick (1812-1864) led the forces of the Union against the Confederate troops when the two armies clashed in Virginia.

Since Confederate forces started advancing, General Sedgwick realized that his soldiers needed encouragement. Therefore, he started shouting:

“What? Men dodging this way for single bullets? What will you do when they open fire along the whole line? I am ashamed of you, dodging that way. They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist…”

The General probably wanted to say “distance”, but he never finished his sentence.

He was fatally shot.

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Elephant that washes windows - Dante Gabriel Rossetti

British painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882) had many different animals in the courtyard of his house. One day, he decided to buy an elephant.  

His friends asked him why he wanted such a large animal, why an elephant. This is what Dante Gabriel Rossetti told them:

“Why? So I can teach it to wash the windows of my house. Then everyone would stare and say, 'That elephant is washing the windows of the house in which lives Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the famous artist.”

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