Lincoln to Thai king: Thanks but no thanks for the elephants

The elephant is Thailand's national animal, so it's only natural that King Mongkut in 1861 offered to send a pair to the United States as a gift of the friendship between the two countries.

President Abraham Lincoln, likely bemused and relieved at the distraction from America's then-raging Civil War, politely declined, saying his country uses the steam engine and would have no use for the working animals.

In this March 22, 2018, photo, a letter written by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 replying to Thailand's King Mongkut is on display at the exhibition "Great and Good Friends," inside Grand Palace Bangkok, Thailand.  (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

In this March 22, 2018, photo, a visitor tours the exhibition titles "Great and Good Friends," inside the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

As part of the 200th anniversary celebrating the long-lasting relationship, the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok is showcasing historic gifts the two countries have exchanged on the grounds of Thailand's Grand Palace.

It includes the first-ever official letter sent in 1818 from a Thai diplomat to President James Monroe — there are documents spanning two centuries — as well as some spectacular Thai objects d'art and portraits.

Then there's the elephants story, also documented among the exhibits.

In his 1861 letters, Mongkut offered the elephants after learning they were not native to America. He also sent along three gifts: a sword and scabbard, a photograph of the king with one of his daughters, and an impressive pair of elephant tusks.

He addressed the letters to then-President James Buchanan "or whomever would become president" with elaborate paragraph-long salutations.

Lincoln was already president by the time the letters arrived a year later. He penned a reply, addressing the king simply as "Great and Good Friend."

In this March 22, 2018, photo, a letter written by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 replying to Thailand's King Mongkut is on display at the exhibition "Great and Good Friends," inside Grand Palace Bangkok, Thailand.(AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

In this March 22, 2018, photo, a letter written by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 replying to Thailand's King Mongkut is on display at the exhibition "Great and Good Friends," inside Grand Palace Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

The offer of elephants did not neglect practical details. Mongkut stated, "On this account, we desire to procure and send elephants to be let loose to increase and multiply in the continent of America." But Thailand — then called Siam — did not have a large enough vessel to transport them, the letter said.

It continued: "In reference to this opinion of ours if the President of the United States and Congress who conjointly with him rule the country see fit to approve, let them provide a large vessel loaded with hay and other food suitable for elephants on the voyage, with tanks holding a sufficiency of fresh water, and arranged with stalls so that the elephants can both stand and lie down in the ship — and send it to receive them. We on our part will procure young male and female elephants and forward them one or two pairs at a time."

Mongkut then in his letter directs that the elephants should be kept away from the cold and under the sun, and to also "let them with all haste be turned out to run wild in some jungle suitable for them not confining them any length of time."

"If these means can be done we trust that the elephants will propagate their species hereafter in the continent of America," the letter said.

In this March 22, 2018, photo, the signature of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln at the end of his letter in reply to Thailand's King Mongkut in 1862, is on display at the exhibition title "Great and Good Friends," inside Grand Palace Bangkok, Thailand.  (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

In this March 22, 2018, photo, the U.S. Ambassador to Thailand Glynn Davies talks to media in front of hand-written letters from U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and Thailand king Mongkut on display at the exhibition titled "Great and Good Friends," inside Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Thai monarchy expert Tongthong Chandransu said the offer of elephants reveals that Mongkut wanted to be part of building the young United States.

"You have to consider that 200 years ago, elephants were an important means of transportation and helped a lot with our work, not to mention warfare, but also the building of homes and cities," Tongthong said.

The ever-practical Lincoln rejected the offer to send wild elephants running through American forests, saying the country "does not reach a latitude so low as to favor the multiplication of the elephant." He said in his 1862 letter that "steam on land, as well as on water, has been our best and most efficient agent of transportation in internal commerce."

The exhibition runs until June 30.

BANGKOK (AP) — About 1,300 people have fled from eastern Myanmar into Thailand, officials said Saturday, as fresh fighting erupted at a border town that has recently been captured by ethnic guerillas.

Fighters from the Karen ethnic minority last week captured the last of the Myanmar army’s outposts in and around Myawaddy, which is connected to Thailand by two bridges across the Moei River.

The latest clashes were triggered in the morning when the Karen guerillas launched an attack against Myanmar troops who were hiding near the 2nd Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge, a major crossing point for trade with Thailand, said police chief Pittayakorn Phetcharat in Thailand's Mae Sot district. He estimated about 1,300 people fled into Thailand.

Thai officials reported people had started crossing since Friday following clashes in several areas of Myawaddy.

The fall of Myawaddy is a major setback for the military that seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021. Myanmar’s once-mighty armed forces have suffered a series of unprecedented defeats since last October, losing swathes of territory including border posts to both ethnic fighters, who have been fighting for greater autonomy for decades, and pro-democracy guerrilla units that took up arms after the military takeover.

The clashes, involving drone attacks from the Karen forces and airstrikes by the Myanmar military, had subsided by noon Saturday compared to the morning, but Mae Sot police chief Pittayakorn Phetcharat said he could still hear sporadic gunshots. He said Thai authorities would move people fleeing into a safer area.

Footage from the Thai border showed Thai soldiers maintaining guard near the bridge with sounds of explosions and gunshots in the background. People with children waded across the river with their belongings and were received by Thai officials on the river bank. Several are seen taking shelter in buildings along the river bank on the Myanmar side.

Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin wrote on the social media platform X on Saturday that he was closely monitoring the situation at the border.

“I do not desire to see any such clashes have any impact on the territorial integrity of Thailand and we are ready to protect our borders and the safety of our people. At the same time, we are also ready to provide humanitarian assistance if necessary,” he wrote.

In March, Thailand delivered its first batch of humanitarian assistance to Myanmar for about 20,000 displaced people.

Nikorndej Balangura, a spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters on Friday that Thailand is currently working to expand its aid initiative.

People cross the Moei river as they flee Myawaddy township in Myanmar to Thailand's Mae Sot town in Thailand's Tak province, Saturday, April 20, 2024. About 1,300 people have fled from eastern Myanmar into Thailand, officials said Saturday, as fresh fighting erupted near a border town that has recently been captured by ethnic guerillas. (AP Photo/Warangkana Wanichachewa)

A Thai military armored vehicle takes a position with sounds of explosions and gunshots along the Moei river, under the 2nd Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge in Mae Sot in Thailand's Tak province Saturday, April 20, 2024. About 1,300 people have fled from eastern Myanmar into Thailand, officials said Saturday, as fresh fighting erupted near a border town that has recently been captured by ethnic guerillas. (AP Photo/Warangkana Wanichachewa)

People cross the Moei river as they flee Myawaddy township in Myanmar to Thailand's Mae Sot town in Thailand's Tak province, Saturday, April 20, 2024. More than a thousand people have fled from eastern Myanmar into Thailand on Saturday as fresh fighting erupted near the border of the town that has recently been captured by guerillas from the Karen ethnic minority, officials said.(AP Photo/Warangkana Wanichachewa)