In the 1930s they finally arrived in New York, where for the next two decades Modoc rose to great performing fame in the center ring of the world's most popular circus. Their unexpected detour lasted many years, as Bram studied under the legendary mahout elephant trainers of the Far East while Modoc-fully grown and with Bram at her side-became a master harvester in the remote teak forests of rural India. Taken to shore in India, Modoc and Bram were heroes to the elephant-loving Indian people. Weeks into their voyage to the United States, they were caught in a catastrophic storm at sea, and Modoc single-handedly saved the lives of Bram and thirty sailors. The two were raised as siblings, and when news came that the circus was being sold, thirteen-year-old Bram did the only thing he could imagine: He stowed away to be with Modoc. Modoc grew impressively beyond anyone's imagination-exceptional intelligence, massive size, and a gentleness surpassing that of even the kindest elephants. Bram was the son of a local elephant handler, and even as a child he showed signs of becoming a master handler. The boy was named Bram, the elephant was named Modoc. On a quiet morning in 1896, in a small German circus town, a boy and an elephant were born.
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