PAUL B. DU CHAILLU has made himself famous, not
only by
his travels extending into new and hitherto unknown regions,
but
also by his adventures with the animals of the Tropics.
Espec-
ially are we indebted to Du Chaillu for his graphic account
of the
gorilla, and for the captures he made at the risk of
his own life and the
lives of those who shared his exploits. This remarkable
animal has
been made known to the world mainly by the thrilling
accounts of Du
Chaillu.
The following is Du Chaillu's narrative of the capture
of his first
gorilla :
Suddenly, as we were yet creeping along, in a silence
which made a
heavy breath seem loud and distinct, the woods were at
once filled with
the tremendous barking roar of the gorilla.
Then the underbrush swayed rapidly just ahead, and presently
before
us stood an immense male gorilla. He had gone through
the jungle on
ihis all-fours; but when he saw our party he erected
himself and looked
us boldly in the face. He stood about a dozen yards from
us, and was a
sight I think never to forget. Nearly six feet high,
at least so ap-
pearing, with immense body, huge chest, and great muscular
arms, with
iiercely- glaring large deep gray eyes, and a hellish
expression of face,
which seemed to me like some nightmare vision: thus stood
before us
sjthis king of the African forests.
He was not afraid of us. He stood there, and beat his
breast with his
huge fists till it resounded like an immense bass-drum,
which is their
mode of offering defiance : meantime giving vent to roar
after roar.
The roar of the gorilla is the most singular and awful
noise heard in
these African woods. It begins with a sharp bark, like
an angry dog,
then glides into a deep bass roll, which literally and
closely resembles the
roll of distant thunder along the sky, for which I have
sometimes been
tempted to take it where I did not see the animal. So
deep is it that it
seems to proceed less from the mouth and throat than
from the deep
chest and vast paunch.
A Formidable Monster.
His eyes began to flash fiercer fire as we stood motionless
on the defen-
sive, and the crest of short hair which stands on his
forehead began to
twitch rapidly up and down, while his powerful fangs
were shown as he
again sent forth a thunderous roar. And now truly he
reminded me of
nothing but some hellish dream creature a being of
that hideous order,
half man, half beast, which we find pictured by old artists
in some repre-
sentations of the infernal regions. He advanced a few
steps then
stopped to utter that hideous roar again advanced again,
and finally
stopped when at a distance of about six yards from us.
And here, as he
began another of his roars and beating his breast in
rage, we fired and
killed him.
With a groan which had something terribly human in it,
and yet was-
full of brutishness, it fell forward on its face. The
body shook convul-
sively for a few minutes, the limbs moved about in a
struggling way,
and then all was quiet, death had done its work, and
I had leisure to
examine the huge body. It proved to be five feet eight
inches high, and
the muscular development of the arms and breast showed
what immense
strength it had possessed.
My men, though rejoicing at our luck, immediately began
to quarrel,
about the apportionment of the meat for they really
eat this creature.
I saw that we should come to blows presently if I did
not interfere, and
therefore said I should myself give each man his share,
which satisfied
all. As we were too tired to return to our camp of last
night, we deter-
mined to camp here on the spot, and accordingly soon
had some shel-
ters erected and dinner going on. Luckily, one of the
fellows shot a
deer just as we began to camp, and on its meat I feasted
while my men
ate gorilla.
I noticed that they very carefully saved the brain, and
was told that
charms were made of this charms of two kinds. Prepared
in one way,.
the charm gave the wearer a strong hand for the hunt,
and in another it
gave him success with women. This evening we had again
gorilla sto-
ries but all to the same point already mentioned, that
there are gorillas
inhabited by human spirits.
The young athletic Negroes, in their ivory hunts, well
know the hab-
its of the gorilla. He does not, like the lion, sullenly
retreat on seeing
them, but swings himself rapidly down to the lower branches,
courting
the conflict, and clutches at the foremost of his enemies.
The hideous
aspect of his visage, his green eyes with their glaring
fire, his open
mouth and fierce-looking teeth,the savage hand-like claws
which form
the end of his lower extremities, all render him an object
of terror. When
he is pursued, as he is sometimes by daring natives who
are his natural
enemies, he will defend himself with the utmost courage,
and has been
known to attack his foes with indescribable fury.
Continuing his account of the adventures of the chase,
Du Chaillu
narrates what happened to one of his men. It is a wonder
the poor
native did not lose his life.
Hunter Tossed by a Bull.
I started out early to try and get a shot at some buffalo
which were
said to be in the prairie back of the town. Ifouta, a
hunter, accompanied
me, and met with an accident through losing his presence
of mind. We
had been out about an hour, when we came upon a bull
feeding in the
midst of a little prairie surrounded by a wood which
made our approach
easy. Ifouta walked around opposite to where I lay in
wait, that if the
animal took alarm at him it might fly toward me ; and
then began to
crawl, in the hunter fashion, through the grass toward
his prey. All
went well till he came near enough for a shot. Just then,
unluckily, the
bull saw him. Ifouta immediately fired. The gun made
a long fire, and
he only wounded the beast, which, quite infuriated, as
it often is at the
attack of hunters, immediately rushed upon him.
It was now that poor Ifouta lost his presence of mind.
In such cases,
which are continually happening to those who hunt, the
cue of the hun-
ter is to remain perfectly quiet till the beast is within
a jump of him, then
to step nimbly to one side and let it rush past. But
Ifouta got up
and ran.
Of course, in a moment the bull had him on his horns.
It tossed
him high into the air once, twice, thrice, ere I could
run up, and,
by my shouts, draw it fury to myself Then it came rushing
at me.
But my guns do not hesitate, and, as I had a fair shot,
I killed it
without trouble.
Ifouta proved to be considerably bruised, but, on the
whole, more
scared than hurt ; and when I had washed him off in a
creek near by, he
was able to walk home.
When Du Chaillu was among the tribe called Camma, he had
a curi-
ous experience with a doctor who was celebrated for detecting
evil spir-
its and healing the sick. He says :
Ishungui, the man who had faithfully taken care of my
house, lay at
death's door. He had gone out on a fishing excursion,
caught cold, and
had now a lung fever. I knew when I saw him that he must
die, and
tried to prepare his mind for the change. But his friends
by no means
gave him up. They sent for a distinguished doctor, and
under his aus-
pices began the infernal din with which they seek to
cure a dying
man.
Infernal Looking Doctor.
The Camma theory of disease is that Okamboo (the devil)
has got
into the sick man. Now this devil is only to be driven
out with noise,
and accordingly they surround the sick man and beat drums
and kettles
close to his head; fire off guns close to his ears; sing,
shout, and dance
all they can. This lasts till the poor fellow either
dies or is better
unless the operators become tired out first, for the
Camma doctors either
kill or cure.
Ishungui died. He left no property, and his brother buried
him with-
out a coffin in a grave in the sand, so shallow that,
when I chanced upon
it some days after, I saw that the wild beasts had been
there and eaten
the corpse. The mourning lasted but six days ; and, as
there were no
wives or property, so there was no feast. The relatives
of the deceased
slept one night in his house, as a mark of respect ;
and then all that
remained was to discover the person who had bewitched
the dead man.
For that a young man, generally healthy, should die so
suddenly in
course of nature was by no means to be believed.
A canoe had been dispatched up to the lake to bring down
a great
doctor. They brought one of the chief's sons, a great
rascal, who had
been foremost in selling me an idol, and who was an evident
cheat.
When all was ready for the trial, I went down to look
at the doctor, who
looked literally " like the devil." I never saw a more
ghastly object.
He had on a high head-dress of black feathers. His eyelids
were painted
red, and a red stripe, from the nose upward, divided
his forehead in two
parts. Another red stripe passed round his head. The
face was painted
white, and on each side of the mouth were two round red
spots. About
his neck hung a necklace of grass and also a cord, which
held a box
against his breast. This little box is sacred, and contains
spirits. A.
number of strips of leopard and other skins crossed his
breast and were-
exposed about his person ; and all these were charmed,
and had charms
attached to them. From each shoulder down to his hands
was a white
stripe, and one hand was painted quite white. To complete
this horrible
array, he wore a string of little bells around his body.
A Huge Fraud.
He sat on a box or stool, before which stood another box
containing
charms. On this stood a looking-glass, beside which lay
a buffalo-horn
containing some black powder., and said, in addition,
to be the refuge of
many spirits. He had a little basket of snake-bones,
which he shook
frequently during his incantations ; as also several
skins, to which little
bells were attached. Near by stood a fellow beating a
board with two
sticks. All the people of the village gathered about
this couple, who,,
after continuing their incantations for quite a while,
at last came to the
climax. A native was told to call over the names of persons
in the vil-
lage, in order that the doctor might ascertain if any
one of those named
did the sorcery. As each name was called the old cheat
looked in the
glass to see the result.
During the whole operation I stood near him, which seemed
to trouble
him greatly. At last, after all the names were called,
the doctor declared,
that he could not find any "witch-man," but that an evil
spirit dwelt in
the village, and many people would die if they continued
there. I have
a suspicion that this final judgment with which the incantations
broke up
was a piece of revenge upon me. I had no idea till next
day how seri-
ously the words of one of these Ouganga doctors is taken.
The next morning all was excitement. The people were scared
: they
said their chief was not willing to have them live longer
here ; that he
would kill them, etc. Then began, the removal of all
kinds of property
and the tearing down of houses; and by nightfall I was
actually left alone
in my house with my boys, both of whom were anxious to
be off.
Adventures of Andersson.
Another explorer who has gained a world-wide fame and
deserves to>
be ranked with such heroes as Stanley, Emin Pasha, Speke
and Grant,,
and others, is Andersson, who gives us a graphic account
of his travels.
Several of his remarkable experiences we here reproduce,
and the reader
will doubtless confirm the opinion that these are of
special interest. One
extraordinary part of his travels in the Tropics relates
to the privations
and sufferings which he and his party underwent from
lack of water.
The reader must remember that travellers in the Tropics
very often suffer
from extreme thirst. Andersson's experience in this respect
is one of
the most remarkable on record. The following is his vivid
account of it:
On the second evening, or on the third after leaving
Okaoa, I saw the
guides suddenly halt and look about them, as if undecided
how to pro-
ceed. They had a short time previously declared that
we should reach
water that night. My suspicions were therefore at once
aroused, or
rather my heart misgave me. "Surely," I muttered to myself,
" the fel-
lows are trying to deceive us, or they have lost their
way ! " The one
conjecture was as bad as the other. For a few seconds
I remained
silent; but, seeing them still wavering, I advanced,
and in a voice tremb-
ling with rage and distress, thundered out, " Where is
the water, men ? "
adding, with my fowling-piece presented at the head of
the acting guide,
"If you doh't bring us to water before noon to-morrow,
you die. Proceed."
It soon became obvious, however, that they had lost themselves,
and
that, under such circumstances, threats would only tend
still more to
confuse them. I consequendy, as they were wandering to
and fro like
men groping in the dark, and the night was fast closing
upon us,
sounded a halt to bivouac. That night was perhaps the
most painful
one in my life. I felt most keenly that not only the
issue of the under-
taking, but the lives of my party, were at stake. The
agony I suffered
is indescribable; yet, lest I should frighten my attendants,
I did not
betray the deep emotions that agitated me. They had,
nevertheless,
already taken the alarm ; dismay nay, despair was
depicted on every
countenance, but, be it said to their credit, not a murmur
escaped them.
Supposing the place we were in search of should not be
found, the
nearest water, Okaoa, was three long days' journey off.
Could this
place be reached in safety in our present weak state
? I dared scarcely
answer the questio\i. The possible answer seemed too
awful to dwell
upon.
Lost in the Wilderness.
Sleep was that night, of course, out of the question,
and before break
of day I was in the saddle in search of water, having
first dispatched
three different parties on fhe same errand in as many
directions. I
returned to the camp after eight hours sharp riding and
walking, my
horse completely done up unsuccessful ! My approach
was watched
by the men at the wagon with feverish anxiety ; there
was no need of
words ; my face told but too plainly my complete failure.
One of my
men who had also been absent on a similar mission, soon
joined us,
equally successless. Two parties were still absent, and
on their efforts
rested now all our hopes ; but hour after hour elapsed
without any news.
The sun set, yet no men. The shadows of evening crept
upon us, yet no
men. The moon rose, yet no men.
Our anxiety was at its height. Had the men found the water,
or had
they lost themselves in this fearful and death-boding
wilderness ? Should
I wait for the return of daylight before finally deciding
on what course
to pursue, or should I face back at once? These and many
others were
the distracting thoughts that crowded in raoid succession
on my giddy
brain. The delay of a night would occasion the loss of
another day, and
then, just suppose the absent parties unsuccessful in
finding water, what
would be the result ? Apparently inevitable destruction.
Terrible Sufferings.
The oxen had now been four days without water, and their
distress
v/as already very great. Their hollow flanks, drooping
heads, and low,
melancholy moans, uttered at intervals, told but too
plainly their misery,
and went to my heart like daggers. My poor horse was
no longer an
animated creature, but a spectre of himself a gaunt,
staggering skeleton.
The change that had come upon him during the last twenty-four
hours
was incredible. From time to time he would put his head
into the
wagon, into anyone's hands, and, looking wistfully and
languidly into
his face, would reproachfully (his looks conveyed as
much) seem to say,
Cruel man, don't you see I am dying ; why don't you relieve
my burn-
ing thirst?" The dogs, again, ceased to recognize my
caresses. Their
eyes were so deeply sunken in their sockets as to be
scarcely per-
ceptible. They glided about in spectral silence; death
was in their
faces. The wagon was heavily laden, the soil exceedingly
heavy, the
sun in the daytime like an immense burning-glass, and
the oppressive-
ness of the atmosphere was greatly increased by the tremendous
fires,
which, ravaging the country far and wide, made it like
a huge fiery
furnace.
Under such circumstances the oxen could never hold out
for seven
days the time which must, I calculated, elapse before
I could reach
Okaoa without water! Well, then, with all these ominous
facts and
forebodings before me, would it be advisable to await
the return of the
absent men ? A few moments of anxious self-communion
determined
me not to do so, but to retrace my steps without farther
delay. This res-
olution was, of course, the death-blow to the expedition.
Before starting
on our backward course I fired a number of shots, which
received no
answer, to attract the notice of the absentees.
Appalling Spectacle.
I had yet a small supply of water in the wagon, having
taken the pre-
caution at starting to take the entire stock under my
immediate charge.
I now served out a few mouthfuls to each individual,
left a small quan-
tity, together with a few biscuits, on a bush for the
absent men, should
they find their way back, and then began the return journey
at a brisk
pace, but with a heavy heart.
Health and strength, time and the season, had been thus
wasted and
lost, heavy pecuniary sacrifices made, the life of men
and valuable beasts
jeopradized, bright prospects blighted, and all all
to so little purpose!
My feelings on this memorable occasion may be more easily
imagined
than described.
We had proceeded but a comparatively short distance, and
were just
escaping out of a thorn-thicket when we were suddenly
startled by a
grand, but to us appalling sight.
The whole country before us was one huge lake of flames.
Turning
to one of the natives, I exclaimed, " Good God, our return
is cut
off! " I had seen many wood and grass fires, but nothing
to equal
this. Immediately in front of us lay stretched out like
a sea a vast pas-
ture prairie, dotted with occasional trees, bounded in
the distance by
groves of huge giraffe thorns, all in a blaze ! Through
the very midst of
this lay our path. By delaying a few hours the danger
would have been con-
siderably diminished, if not altogether over ; but delay
in our case seemed al-
most more dangerous than going forward, and so on we
pushed, trusting to
some favorable accident to bring us, through the perils
we had to face.
As we advanced we heard distinctly the sputtering and
hissing of the in-
flamed grasses and brushwood, the cracking of the trees
as they reluctantly
yielded their massive forms to the unrelenting and all-devouring
element, the
screams of startled birds and other commingling sounds
of terror and devastation.
There was a great angle in our road, running parallel,
as it were, to the raging fire,
but afterward turning abruptly into a burning savanna.
By the time we had reached this point, the conflagration,
still in its glory on our right, was fast receding on
our left, thus
opening a passage, into which we darted without hesitation,
although the
ground was still smouldering and reeking, and in some
places quite alive
with flickering sparks from the recent besom of hot flames
that had swept
over it.
Tired as our cattle were, this heated state of the ground
made the poor
brutes step out pretty smartly. At times we ran great
risk of being
crushed by the falling timbers. Once a huge trunk, in
flames from top
to bottom, fell athwart our path, sending up millions
of sparks, and scat-
tering innumerable splinters of lighted wood all around
us, while the
numerous nests of the social grossbeaks in the ignited
trees looked like
so many lamps suspended in designs at once natural, pleasing,
and splen-
did. It was altogether a glorious illumination, worthy
of Nature's pal-
ace with its innumerable windows and stately vaulted
canopy. But the
danger associated with the grand spectacle was too great
and too immi-
nent for us thoroughly to appreciate its magnificence.
Indeed, we were
really thankful when once our backs were turned on the
awful scene.
At break of day we halted for a few minutes to breathe
and to change
oxen, then continued to journey on. I dispatched all
the loose cattle ahead,
giving the men orders to return with a fresh team as
soon as they had
drunk, fed, and rested a little. We arrived at the ravine
a little before
midnight, but on attemping to kraal the oxen, notwithstanding
their fa-
tigue, the thirsty brutes leaped over the stout and tall
thorn fences as if
they had been so many rushes, and with a wild roar set
off at full speed
for Okaoa fountain, which they reached the following
day, having
then been more than one hundred and fifty hours without
a single drop of
water !
Before reaching the water the men in charge of the loose
cattle had be-
come so exhausted with long and incessant marching, suffering
all the
time from burning thirst, that one by one they had sunk
down. The cat-
tle, unherded, found their way to the fountain without
much difficulty;
but the wretched horse missed his, and kept wandering
about until he
dropped from sheer exhaustion. Some natives fortunately
found the
brute, and reporting the discovery to their chief, he
good-naturedly
brought the dying beast some drink and fodder, by which
means
he gradually recovered. The animal, when found, had been
seven
days without water. I had no idea that a horse was capable
of
enduring fatigue and thirst to the extent experienced
by this hack of mine.
The poor dogs were by this time in a fearful state. What
was once a
'dear perspicuous eye now appeared like a mere lustrous
speck under a
shaggy brow. Blood flowed at times from their nostrils
; and it was
with difficulty they dragged along their worn and emaciated
carcasses.
Sometimes they tried to give vent to their great sufferings
in dismal
howls, half stifled in the utterance.
Some of the men were nearly as much affected. One was
more than once speechless
from thirst, and it was quite pitiful to see him, like
a man despairing of life, chew old coffee-
tobacco and withered tea-leaves. For my own part, I am
thankful to say I suffered on this try-
ing occasion, in a bodily sense at least, less perhaps
than the rest of my party.
The day after our arrival at the water-course the lost
men suddenly and unexpectedly made
o their appearance, and, to my great surprise, I f learned
that they had accidentally stumbled
upon the very water we had so long searched for in vain.
In retracing their steps to the
wagon to report the good news they had unfortunately
lost their way, and, after a fruitless
search, were obliged to bivouac on the waste. Like myself,
they had repeatedly discharged
guns, but as this was done long after dark, it is probable
the wagon had by that time taken its
departure, so that their signals were unheard and unanswered.
On the eighth day, late in the evening, I reached Okaoa
in safety, without the loss of a
single man or beast, all, however, being in a dreadful
state of prostration,
not only from fatigue and hardship, but from torn and
lacerated feet.
This, coupled with the impossibility of procuring trustworthy
guides,
with the evident dearth of water, the absence of game,
and many other
formidable hinderances, induced me to face homeward without
any
further delay than was necessary to recruit in a measure
the strength and
vigor of bipeds and quadrupeds.
By a careful computation, I found that the distance was
115 hours
actual travel, which is equivalent to 300 English miles
in round numbers,
while in our last two fruitless attempts to push northward
we had trav-
elled one hundred and twenty hours, that is, about three
hundred and
thirty English miles a distance more than sufficient
to have brought us
to the Cunene nay, there and back again had we been
able to hold
our course directly for that river.
If I had been travelling in the North of Africa, for instance,
crossing
the Nubian Desert, I could have availed myself of an
animal that under-
goes privation arising from want of water better than
horses or oxen.
The camel is celebrated for its endurance. It seems to
be constructed
for the purpose of carrying sufficient water to last
it for a number of
days. It can drink and then go a long time without any
apparent incon-
venience. The Arabs, who cross tropical deserts, also
have a way of
carrying water in skin bags, which, although not very
palatable after a
number of days' journey, is, nevertheless, better than
none at all. The
accompanying engraving shows a traveller in the desert
leading his
camel, and among the various articles with which the
beast is loaded, we
may be sure there is a supply of water.
Andersson mentions another remarkable animal, sometimes
sought by
the hunter : Wild boars were rather numerous along
the Omuramba, and
frequently afforded us excellent coursing. The speed
of these animals is
surprisingly great. On open ground, when fairly afoot,
I found the dogs
no match for them, and yet some of my curs were rather
swift of foot.
The dogs, nevertheless, dodged them at times successfully;
at others
they came willingly to bay. They fight desperately. I
have seen wild
boars individually keep off most effectually half a dozen
fierce assailants.
I have also seen them, when hotly pursued, attack and
severely wound
their pursuers. We killed occasionally two, and even
three of them, in
the course of a day. When young and fat they proved capital
eating,,
and from their novelty were quite a treat.
Other game was almost daily secured, and my party gorged
to their
hearts' content on animal food. Indeed, we had plenty
to spare. The
animals we usually killed were a kind that can abstain
long from drink-
ing, for water is exceedingly scarce in this country
so much so that it
was only with very great difficulty we could obtain a
sufficiency for our
cattle.
One night I encounted a troop of lions under circumstances
which
exhibited these royal beasts in a somewhat new light.
In the early part of the night I had observed several
animals gliding
noiselessly to the water, but considerably out of range.
Not being able
to make out what they were, I slipped quietly out, and
approached
the spot where they were drinking. I got, from the nature
of
the ground, pretty close to them unperceived, yet was
still unable to
name them. From the sound q£ lapping at the water,
I concluded that
I had hyenas before me, and as one of three animals was
leaving the
water-way I fired. The bullet took effect, and, uttering
a growl, the beast
disappeared. Whereupon, " Surely not lions ! " I muttered
to myself.
The remaining two had in the mean time also ceased drinking,
and were
moving lazily away, when a low shrill whistle from me
at once arrested,
their steps.
I leveled and pulled the trigger; in vain this time, the
ball went too
high in short, right over the object aimed at. The
animal did not,,
however, budge an inch, and I now clearly saw a lion.
Rising to my
feet, I shouted, in order to drive him off; but he remained
stationary. I
did not at all like his appearance, and hastened at once
back to my
ambush to reload. When again quite ready and on the look-out
for
him, he was gone ; but almost imm.ediately afterward
two others resem-
bling the first approached the water. Having drunk their
fill, they were
about to retrace their steps, when suddenly- my person
being purposely
exposed to view they seemed to espy me, and eyeing
me for a few
seconds, one the largest made straight for my ambush.
An Exciting Duel.
This seemed strange ; but, to make quite sure of his intentions,
I stood
up, and when the brute was within about forty yards of
me, shouted. To
my utter surprise, instead of moving off he came quickly
on, till at a dis-
tance of twenty-five paces or thereabouts he suddenly
squatted, evidently
intending to spring on me. " Nay, old fellow," I muttered
to myself, " if
that's the ticket, I will be even with you;" and, dropping
the double-
barreled gun which I held in my hands at the moment,
I seized the ele-
phant rifle, leveled, took a very steady aim at his chest,
and fired. The
bullet sped true, and I thought I had killed him outright
; but not so,
for after rolling over two or three times, he scrambled
up and decamped.
However, I had no doubt in my own mind that the wound
would prove
fatal. On receiving the shot he gave a startling growl,
and in making
his escape was johied by his associate, who had, while
the duel was pend-
ing, remained a passive spectator.
Death in the Jungle.
At break of day, taking up the trail of the wounded animal,
I had only
proceeded about two hundred yards when the dogs gave
tongue at a
small bush, where immediately afterward I saw a stately
lion rise to his
feet and limp forward two or three paces. But the exertion
was too
much for him; he halted, and, turning half round, looked
fiercely at his
assailants. Not being myself in a favorable position,
I shouted to my
men to fire.
One responded to the call, and the lion dropped to rise
no more. In
an instant the dogs were clinging to his ears, throat,
and head. The
brute, still alive, grappled bravely with his assailants.
The next moment
half a dozen spears were quivering in his body, and a
hundred more or
so would soon have been similarly sheathed had I not
promptly ridden
up and stopped the natives, who were rushing in upon.
the prostrate foe
like maniacs. I wished the dogs to finish him, and they
did so ; but three
of the best were wounded in the scuffle, only one, however,
at all seri-
ously. The aim which had killed this lion had been most
perfect. The
bullet had entered exactly the centre of his chest, and,
traversing the
entire length of his body, had taken its egress through
the right hind
quarter. It was really, therefore, to me a matter of
great surprise that
the beast had survived the wound so long.
This was decidedly the most exciting huntmg scene I have
ever wit-
nessed. Besides my own people, more than one hundred
natives were
ill the field, vociferating frightfully, and waving and
darting their ox-tail
plumaged spears with a ferocity and earnestness that
Avould have made
a stranger think they were preparing for some dreadful
battle.
Cameron's Expedition.
Another name on the illustrious roll of tropical heroes
is that of
Cameron. Cameron shares the distinction with Stanley
of having
crossed the Dark Continent from sea to sea. His expedition
was a
^remarkable illustration of perseverance and heroic endurance.
His route
lay through Central Africa, and the reader has probably
been made
aware of the fact that this is the most interesting portion
of the Dark
Continent, for the reason that it is the portion which
has been explored
:the least, and also from the fact that it contains the
sources of the Nile.
The problem of many centuries has been "Where does the
Nile rise?""
This question has been asked by scientific societies,
by individual ex-
plorers and by the world in general. It was very natural
that Speke
and Grant, Stanley and Livingstone, and then Cameron
should make
this region the field of observation and exploit. Raker
started from
Cairo and came south through the White Nile Valley. His
name is
associated with the Soudan and the regions adjacent.
It was left for
Cameron to place his name beside that of Stanley by making
an expedi-
tion from one ocean to the other. This he did, and accompanying
this
sketch of his achievements is an accurate map showing
the region he
traversed.
Cameron has rendered important service to physical science
and
geography. His discoveries have been of a very important
character,
and these have only confirmed the discoveries which were
made before
his expedition and since. In fact it is noticeable that
the great African
explorers who liave traversed realms widely apart and
then have been
brought together at some point of conjunction, have agreed
almost per-
fectly concerning the physical characteristics of the
continent. While
jealousy has, of course, been excited on the part of
their friends, and
many absurd claims have been made, the men themselves
have been
comparatively free from this petty spirit.
Stanley was doubted, was called in question, and there
were those who
at first disbelieved that he had ever seen Livingstone,
but when they came
to obtain the evidence of his wonderful triumph, which
could not be
denied, they gracefully yielded and gave to him the unqualified
praise he
deserved. From this time on Stanley's fame was assured
; no one
doubted that he was the foremost hero of the age in tropical
discovery^
CHAPTER XXIX.
THE CELEBRATED EMIN PASHA.
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